FRTEB
20 May 2018
Re: Royal Wedding The royal wedding was grand, indeed. Meghan was a vision of loveliness if ever there was one - and the way she looked at Harry - now that's a woman in love. He's a very lucky man. They make a lovely couple and I hope they have a long and happy life together. Happy 40th Anniversary, Lupo. That's something to be proud of in this day and age.
Kool Keith
20 May 2018
Re: DRIP I don't think there's a right or wrong answer to your question.Personally I'm reinvesting as I have a set number of shares I want to own here and I'm not there yet (in no rush). Once I hit the figure I'll be reinvesting elsewhere. There is the argument of collect divs and reinvest when you want too/share price lower but that carries higher trading costs so another angle depends on the amount of your personal dividend.....As LK once said 'never sell shell' I'm sure that's a quote he picked up elsewhere but still rings in my head as I bought a few years ago when people where selling.
dronaig
20 May 2018
DRIP Do people here continue to reinvest dividends with high SP ??It occurs to me to take the cash and invest elsewhere? Or am I not not thinking straight I’ve always just had the div go straight back into stock as with other blue chippies
Marvin the paranoid android
20 May 2018
Re: Royal Wedding Happy 40th lupo... Atleast you'll always get the date right if it ever comes up on a quiz lol
Lupo di mare
19 May 2018
Royal Wedding I don't want to pi ss on anyone's parade, but it's our 40th today . That's why they picked today, you know.Wasn't it grand, though. Watched it with the missus - tissues handy as Lupo's an emotional old salt.
polly hound
18 May 2018
flavour of the month RDS tipped again as a buy on CNBC Fast Money tonight. To my mind, the best time to buy has gone, but still looking good for the future,p-
Lupo di mare
18 May 2018
Re: $80 Sound - "Too much more and not good for world growth."Obviously that would be true - eventually - does anyone know how long it took/is taking for the recent low oil price environment to boost the global economy, and by how much if it did? My guess is that the o.p. won't repeat the $150, or whatever, high: the US has cut E&P costs so much that they'll be churning the stuff out like there's no tomorrow; so in the meantime I'm cheering.Anyway, $80 was yesterday, a bit like s.x - ok while it lasts
sound money
17 May 2018
Re: $80 Think you mean that's good for Shell. Agreed. Too much more and not good for world growth.Feet on the ground time.M
Lupo di mare
17 May 2018
$80 folks - dingdong!
Hydrogen Economy
17 May 2018
Re: Alstom H2 Trains in UK - not all goo... Hardboy, hadn’t seen the Ceres announcement, there is a lot of activity, including in UK. I remember riding on a hydrogen FC bus in UK in early 2000’s, this has been developing for a long time. It is happening now with lots of EU and Govt funded initiatives designed to push development and drive down costs, but I’m sure still far from economic and may not win, battery buses and other options are being pushed and may win out. They needs govt intervention because there is no way for manufacturers to monetise the benefits- cleaner air, less health effects, less CO2 etc. so there is no case to invest otherwise. This FCH JU funded initiative was launched on 25 January 2017 and the €125m scheme is set to deliver 144 hydrogen fuel cell buses and associated refuelling infrastructure in nine cities and regions across Europe.Transport for London (TfL) tendering bulk procurement of hydrogen fuel cell buses, in partnership with the cities of Aberdeen and Birmingham. The supply chain for FCEB is maturing with many OEMs entering the market, including: Van Hool, New Flyer, Man, Solaris, VDL, Wrightbus, Skoda, Proterra, APTS, Hyundai, Toyota, EvoBus (Daimler) and Ursus.Lots of other hydrogen initiatives out there. Hydrogen Islands Wind & Tidal systems producing H2 by electrolysis and storing it to cover peiods of low generation. ITM Power (AIM: ITM), the energy storage and clean fuel company & Scottish Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Association, of the first vehicle refuelling in Orkney as part of the Building Innovative Green Hydrogen Systems in an Isolated Territory (BIG HIT) project. [link] SA is helping build a small, self-contained power grid on Semakau Island off Singapore to demonstrate the usefulness of hydrogen gas in converting intermittent power from solar panels and wind turbines into stored fuel that can generate electricity days or even months later, when the need is higher.[link] H2 into natural gas grids, many trails proposed. This is fairly easy and note that the old towns gas was typically 30-50 Mol% hydrogen which was no issue (the toxic CO was what people gassed themselves with).[link] enough from me on hydrogen for now, RDSB’s hydrocarbon business is what pays the divis.H2
IOMINVESTCOM
16 May 2018
Oil Companies Look to Profit at the Pump Major oil companies are doubling down on gas stations, refineries and processing plants, betting on a once-unloved part of the energy business to shore up profits and expand their customer bases.BP PLC plans to open thousands of gas stations in new markets such as Mexico and India over the next three years. Exxon Mobil Corp. is investing heavily to expand its petrochemical operations, which make products like plastics and the basic ingredients for all sorts of household goods. In November, Royal Dutch Shell PLC started work on a massive petrochemical complex in Pennsylvania -- its first big new plant in the U.S. since the 1960s.Companies are expected to add 7.7 million barrels a day of new refining capacity by 2023, according to the International Energy Agency. In petrochemicals, it estimates investment in the U.S. alone over the next five years will add 13 million tons a year of new capacity to produce ethylene, the main component of plastic.American refining, in particular, is booming. Surging shale production has provided plentiful, cheap oil close to the country's petrochemical heartland around the Gulf Coast. Fuel demand is expected to rise. All those dynamics helped drive Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s agreement to buy rival Andeavor last month for $23 billion, a deal that would create the country's largest refiner.As smaller refiners consolidate, the world's major oil companies are promising that investment in their so-called downstream businesses -- and restructuring efforts they are simultaneously pursuing to improve efficiency -- will add billions of dollars to earnings. The focus on downstream grew amid a period of lower oil prices and concerns over long-term oil demand. Cheaper crude -- the primary feedstock for refining -- boosted margins and profits. Oil companies' "upstream," or oil exploration and development, meanwhile, was suffering from lower prices."Upstream at some point was not making money," said Tufan Erginbilgic, head of BP's refining and retail arm. That gave his unit a fresh imperative to "really significantly contribute to group performance, because we have to."Today, higher crude prices pose a risk that margins from refining won't be as strong as they have in recent years. And all the new investment in capacity could end up swamping the market, analysts warned."It remains to be seen the way demand is going to shape up," said Jonathan Leitch, research director at Edinburgh-based consultancy Wood Mackenzie.Big companies say the downstream investment is worth it -- no matter where crude prices head. Executives say that integrating the oil they produce with refining and retail businesses can maximize profits, and help steady finances amid the sometimes-wild swings in crude.Investor pressure also has mounted on the major oil companies to start positioning for an age when fossil fuels may no longer power the world's fleet of passenger cars. Executives are betting their big petrochemical plants can offer diversification. According to the IEA, petrochemical production is expected to be the biggest driver of oil demand growth in the coming decades.Gas stations, too, are promising new growth. They offer access to emerging markets, where demand for fuel is expected to be especially robust. A geographically wide network of branded, retail outlets also could create new opportunities where the industry now sees threats -- such as electric charging stations.Last year, Shell bought one of Europe's biggest electric-vehicle charging companies, New Motion. It has teamed up with a group of car manufacturers to install more than 500 fast-charging points at existing Shell stations, across 10 countries in Europe over the next two years.The rise of electric vehicles is "a reality, and an opportunity," Shell's downstream director, John Abbott, told analysts in March. "We are adjusting our offer to meet this new demand."BP started its push before oil prices collapsed in 2014.
Hardboy
16 May 2018
Re: Alstom H2 Trains in UK - not all goo... H2,And did you see today's announcement by Ceres that they have signed a deal with a Chinese Engine manufacturer to power Chinese Buses with fuel cells. (That's an oversimplification of the deal, but it again points that commercialisation of fuel cells are getting closer.)
Hydrogen Economy
16 May 2018
Re: H2 disadvantages JoatmonI'll agree with you that H2 has many disadvantages, as do gasoline and diesel ICEs, Battery Electric Vehicles and other alternatives. I doubt H2 will the successful route for road transport but as the technologies of production, on-board storage and fuel cells develops maybe it could win out over BEVs.As for experts on hydrogen, I'm not sure that the piece you copied was written by one, but it does give some sort of overview.H2
Joatmon
16 May 2018
Re: H2 disadvantages I am not in any way an expert on Hydrogen - that said there are experts out there and I found this on the internet:"Disadvantages of Hydrogen EnergyWhile hydrogen energy has a lot of admirable benefits, it’s not really the outright preferable, clean and cheap energy source for most governments and companies. In gaseous state, it’s quite volatile. While its volatility gives it an edge over energy sources in terms of accomplishing numerous tasks, it equally renders it risky to use and work around. Some of the disadvantages of hydrogen energy include:Hydrogen energy is expensiveElectrolysis and steam reforming, the two main processes of hydrogen extraction are extremely expensive. This is the real reason it’s not heavily used across the world. Today, hydrogen energy is chiefly used to power most hybrid vehicles. A lot of research and innovation is required to discover cheap and sustainable ways to harness this form of energy. Until then, hydrogen energy would remain exclusively for the rich.Storage complicationsOne of hydrogen properties is that it has a lower density. In fact, it is a lot less denser than gasoline. This means that it has to be compressed to liquid state and stored the same way at lower temperatures to guarantee its effectiveness and efficiency as an energy source. This reason also explains why hydrogen must at all times be stored and transported under high pressure, which is why transportation and common use is far from feasible.It’s not the safest source of energyThe power of hydrogen should not be underestimated at all. Although gasoline is a little more dangerous than hydrogen, hydrogen is hugely flammable and frequently makes headlines for its potential dangers. Compared to gas, hydrogen lacks smell, which makes any leak detection almost impossible. To detect leaks, one must install sensors.Tricky to move aroundIt’s a daunting task to transport hydrogen brilliantly due to its lightness. Oil can be transported safely because it’s mostly pushed through pipes. Coal can conveniently be transported in dump trucks. Hydrogen also presents challenges when considering moving it in large quantities, which is why it’s mostly only transported in small batches.Hydrogen energy cannot sustain the populationDespite the fact that hydrogen is bountiful in supply, the cost of harnessing it limits extensive utilization. As you realize, it’s quite challenging to disrupt the status quo. Energy from fossil fuels still rule the world. There is also no framework put in place to ensure cheap and sustainable hydrogen energy for the normal car owner in the future. Even if hydrogen were to become cheap right now, it would take years to become the most used source of energy since vehicles themselves and service stations would need to be customized to conform to hydrogen requirements. This would require massive capital outlay.It’s a fact that hydrogen energy is a renewable resource because it’s abundantly available and its impacts hugely neglected. However, hydrogen companies will, in real sense, need other forms of non-renewable energy such as fossil (coal, natural gas, and oil) to separate it from oxygen. We may be able to minimize over-reliance on fossils fuels when we embrace hydrogen energy, but it will be daunting to get rid of it from the system."
J Westlock
16 May 2018
Re: Alstom H2 Trains in UK - not all goo... HE (and Joatmon),Yes agreed re: "Not strictly true. H2 can be produced by electrolysis of water using electricity from renewable sources, solar wind etc. or by conversion of biomass, (wood, straw etc)."I'm not sure what Joatmon is proposing but just a few weeks ago... Prof Mark Jacobson who over the last few years has written and spoken of 100% renewables for US energy... dropped his lawsuit against academics who had pointed out that his plan for the rested on an uncosted and highly unlikely 15x increase in usage of existing hydro resources to provide back-up power on low-wind / low-sun days.[link] meets well less than 1/3 the world’s energy needs and that's a massive gap for renewables alone to close.One of the main benefits of H2 is for longer-term storage... hugely longer than the few days that batteries can or are likely to provide.And as HE said electrolysis can be used to generate large quantities of the stuff... and Solar thermal can create high-temperature electrolysis... an efficient method of H2 generation and also the CO2 generated can be used to CO2 to further generate power before it is sequestered.If you look to both China and Japan they have large and long term projects into making use of H2 and it is likely to play a large part in powering industry even if it doesn't end up powering all vehicles.
