Navy Secretary Ray Mabus is betting that the service will get half its energy from renewables by 2020.

Natural gas boom will bring about a renaissance of manufacturing and chemical industries.

 Link:   http://pgjonline.com/us-reindustrialization-offshoot-natural-gas-boom

Seeking Alpha 8/15/12
Refining crude oil has been a low margin business. Huge capital outlay, high maintenance costs, and susceptibility to commodities price swings are just some of the challenges the industry faces...

Seeking Alpha Article 8/2/12 
Since touching a low of around $77 a barrel in June, oil (WTI) has roared back above $90 amidst improving European volatility, general stock market rally, speculation on QE3, and renewed focus on the Iranian tension, albeit on lighter trading. Natural gas (Henry Hub) front-month prices on the other hand, continued its fearsome recovery rally from around $1.90 in April to a close above $3, fueled by the nationwide heat wave and high power demand. Oil and gas producers have mostly tracked this momentum and rallied toward near term resistance. Things seem to be on the up and up, but really?....

Seeking Alpha 8/6/12
Natural Gas (Henry Hub) has been on a tear lately. Since bottoming out around $1.90 in April we have witnessed a >70% rally to a recent high of $3.28, interrupted briefly by a 3-week correction to $2.17. Clearly something quite significant is at play here....

In light of the Iranian sanction, EIA analyzes the latest state of affairs in non-Iran world oil supply and spare capacity.

Arctic oil and gas development is ramping up, but it will take a while to overcome the technical challenges and see meaningful production. Too much ice, darkness, stormy weather, spill clean up etc. The huge cost of operation, abundance of oil/gas, and the desire to prevent outsiders from intervening have created a strange political harmony among the arctic countries. 

Oil Sands production slated to expand significantly but faces fierce competition from Bakken oil on price and access to refineries.

 Link:  http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=118369

The 2012 hurricane season (June 1 - November 30) is predicted to be calmer than average due to El Nino.

 Link: http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=118265

Latest prospects of LNG development. Alaska and Gulf Coast still look the most attractive.

The three public papers outline Ray Dalio's understanding of the economic cycles and the effects of the four mechanisms of deleveraging: debt reduction, austerity, wealth transfer, and debt monetization.

  Link: http://www.bwater.com/home/research--press/template-for-understanding.aspx

Latin American oil/gas production costs to skyrocket, followed by Asia. Thanks to the abundance of shale gas, North American costs are expected to be fairly stable.

Energy storage has to get better for alternative energy to really take off.

DOE's successful field test proved concept of Methane extraction from hydrate in combination with CO2 sequestration. This could have huge implications down the road.

  Link: http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=117534