Archives for Macro - Page 4
I wrote last month on the insanity of South Australian politics. Clean, efficient coal-fired power stations were shut down to be replaced by subsidised wind mills. It didn’t work, so the state imported electricity from the neighboring state of Victoria, electricity generated by burning coal. They then engaged Elon Musk…
We are told that electric automobiles are the future. Currently coal, oil or gas are the source of energy for most electricity. Only about a third of the energy in the source is converted to electricity. There are also significant losses in the transmission of electricity and in charging the…
Image Courtesy hedgeye
Once, Saudi Arabia was a major producer of wheat, along with dairy, chickens and the like. This was achieved in desert conditions by massive use of ground water and desalinated seawater, paid for by the government. Not any more. The depletion of ground water has led to a cessation of…
Infrastructure spending was a hot topic during the US election campaign. It is typically seen as a valid way to boost economic growth while providing real benefits to the people. However, government spending is always a zero-sum game. Anything the government spends must be taken from the private sector economy.…
We are increasingly hearing from a variety of commentators that peak oil consumption is just around the corner. A few days ago, Royal Dutch Shell Plc stated that it expected demand to peak in the next 5 to 15 years. Even OPEC has a scenario whereby oil consumption will peak…