Tag Archives: energy

De-Risking Oil Tanker Investment Decisions

MIT students supervised by Dr Ioannis Lagoudis have come up with an analysis of tanker ownership buying or leasing.  This is a summary of the study.

A simulation study was made, based on a decision tree that covers chartering (leasing) a time charter or voyage charter (per trip), and buying a new or second hand vessel, and various horizon lengths.

It also discusses the risks.  Outcomes seem to show that under their assumptions, time charter is the least risky strategy.

It isn’t profound, but it is a very nice analysis.

 

 

Source: De-Risking Oil Tanker Investment Decisions

The Break Even Cost For Shale Oil

Some more recent data and an excellent explanation of why the break even cost for shale oil is a moving target. Especially useful is the description of the horizontal drilling technique.

This explains why US shale oil production did not go down like the Saudis thought it would when recently (2015) they tried to pump more oil to capture market share from the US and others as world prices fell. It turned out to be hard to drive out shale oil producers.

151019tesfrackingdemo

screenshot-www-forbes-com-2016-12-02-11-02-03  What is the break even cost for shale oil? That depends on a number of factors, and it is a moving target.

Source: The Break Even Cost For Shale Oil

Lost Generation in advanced biofuels at scale

This article offers an interesting perspective and economic analysis of why ethanol fuel has not taken off despite lots of price supports.  Essentially a lot of people bet wrong about what would happen with oil.  There is a proposal for how to help the situation based on an report from the ICCT.  california-contracts-for-difference_white-paper_icct_102016

screenshot-www-biofuelsdigest-com-2016-10-19-08-28-02Source: Lost Generation: ICCT’s financing scheme to jump start advanced biofuels at scale : Biofuels Digest