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I found it truly odd that so many people made fun of Theresa May this week simply because she couldn't stop coughing during a press conference. I can't for the life of me understand why that deserves ridicule. At least Philip Hammond was willing to provide her a cough sweet (my American fingers can barely prevent myself from writing "cough drop" ;-p).Cough, prankster make May's British Dream speech a nightmare (AP)One of the key points within the press conference was her announcement to institute an energy price cap in England. Perhaps now is the time to be critical seeing that we know the energy industry is not willing to go through with the deal until next year!Energy price cap will not take effect this winter, says industry (Guardian)Always interesting to see what the media latches on to and it is usually not practical matters (boring!) until they become a disaster (marketable!).Ok, hope you all enjoy a more regular update for once!EfficiencyEfficiencies helped households save up to 30 percent on energy bills in 2016 (Reuters)A rare efficiency piece in Reuters! Cause to celebrate!FinanceGlencore pips Sinopec to buy Chevron's South African assets (Reuters)RIL divests Pennsylvanian upstream assets for $126 million (India Times)Saudi Aramco plans expansion in India with new unit (Reuters)GridThe bankrupt utility behind Puerto Rico’s power crisis (Reuters)Truly an energy disaster still taking place in Puerto Rico. Only 10% with power and it looks like without help this will drag on indefinitely. While there is talk of debt forgiveness it is not clear that Wall Street would ever allow that to happen.Tesla to send more battery installers to Puerto Rico to restore power (Reuters)Perry's proposed grid rule scrambles energy alliances (Reuters)An interesting analysis of power politics in the US after DOEs new grid resiliency rule. Gas is now teaming up with solar and wind as the clean energy group versus the coal and nuclear populated dirty energy group. I wonder where hydro fits? 7% of electricity output is still a good chunk.LaborPetrol pump dealers strike: 54,000 outlets to remain shut on October 13 (IANS)PipelinesMajor Canadian Pipeline Project Is Abandoned (NY Times)PoliticsArmed faction takes over protection of Libyan oil and gas complex, fresh concern over migrants (Reuters)Main ethnic group in Nigeria's Delta oil hub criticises army exercise (Reuters)Algeria says will not change foreign ownership limit in new energy law (Reuters)Germany’s Shift to Green Power Stalls, Despite Huge Investments (NY Times)Excellent in-depth coverage of the energy conflict heating up in Germany after the recent election.Shunning fossil fuels, 40 Catholic groups seek climate action (Reuters)Hopefully there is an anthropologist examining the intersection of religion and energy!Watch a Top EPA Nominee Embarrass Himself With Feigned Ignorance of Basic Facts (Intercept)Trump picks coal lobbyist for EPA deputy role, drawing mixed reaction (Reuters)Notes from closed meeting show how Interior aims to weaken environmental laws (Washington Post)Interior Department whistleblower resigns, bipartisan former appointees object to Zinke’s statements (Washington Post)More depressing news from within the Trump administration this week.EU split on carbon market reform ahead of U.N. climate talks (Reuters)Nigerian lawmakers to probe state oil firm corruption allegations (Reuters)TechnologyToshiba Develops Next-Generation Lithium-ion Battery with New Anode Material (EnergyTrend)New nanomaterial can create hydrogen fuel from seawater (India Times)TransportationGas trucks boom in China as government curbs diesel in war on smog (Reuters)Boeing-backed, hybrid-electric commuter plane to hit market in 2022 (Reuters)Centre to float bulk tenders for electric rickshaws, three-wheelers (India Times)G.M. and Ford Lay Out Plans to Expand Electric Models (NY Times)Tesla in 'production hell' to meet Model 3 deadline: Elon Musk (Reuters)Jobs, tax and politics: three ways electric vehicles will change our world (Conversation)E-Mobility meets the energy industry (EnergyTrend)This is primarily an advert for the Power2Drive Europe 2018 Conference and Exhibition to be held in Munich this summerBiofuelBrown energy? Dung to power Finnish horse show (Reuters)CoalRussia takes advantage of China's North Korea coal ban (Reuters)I actually did not realize that Russia had anthracite reserves large enough to support exporting.Maharashtra power cuts: Fadnavis instructs to restore coal supply at the earliest (India Times)Power cuts back in suburbs, Thane, Navi Mumbai (Mumbai Mirror)Thousands protest across Australia against giant Adani coal mine (Reuters)In the heart of China's coal country, a city bans most coal (Reuters)The ban until March is also combined with an extremely strict environmental campaign that kicked off in August.GasScotland rejects fracking, citing overwhelming public opposition (Reuters)The government’s new gas deal will ease the squeeze, but dodges the price issue (Conversation)Dirty water in U.S. shale patch drives investment in water handlers (Reuters)Tokyo Gas will not accept destination clauses in new LNG contracts (Reuters)Interesting, but I assume that does not include North Korea.Kazakhstan to start exporting natural gas to China on October 15 (IANS)China's northern cities face soot-free winter with gas revolution (Reuters)HydropowerThe attempt to replenish Lake Chad’s water may fail again. Here’s why (Conversation)NuclearFukushima operator can restart nuclear reactors at world's biggest plant (Guardian)Rosatom's Paks nuclear project in Hungary delayed (Reuters)Indian-American entrepreneur offers fast-track mini nuclear reactors to India (India Times)PetroleumBuckeye resumes operation at Yabucoa, Puerto Rico; tankers discharge fuel (Reuters)Iraq eases financial restrictions on Kurdistan region, in first sign of de-escalation (Reuters)Erdogan says Turkey, Iran and Iraq will decide on closing northern Iraq's oil taps (Reuters)On going debate about Kurdistan's petroleum reserves.Argentina plans auction for offshore oil exploration next year (Reuters)Norway to study shift from oil to tackle climate risks (Reuters)SolarDivided U.S. solar sector spars over trade relief at hearing (Reuters)Final report due to the White House by Nov. 13th.How solar energy saved a Puerto Rican farm from Hurricane Maria (Reuters)At least there is a bit of positive news from Puerto Rico and related to solar power no less