What company will replace Walmart?

That’s the question in the post #page 462 – What will the company that replaces Walmart (and Amazon) look like?

Remember the dominant players Kodak, Pan Am, TWA, Sears, Montgomery Wards, and IBM (the PC manufacturer)?

All but Sears are gone. And they are a subsidiary of K-mart.

IBM (the PC manufacturer) has disappeared from the market and been replaced by IBM (the IT consulting outfit).

The iconic name brands disappear as new, more nimble companies come along.

So we wonder who will replace the current dominant players like Walmart and Amazon.

Continue reading “What company will replace Walmart?”

Forecasts for Eagle Ford production

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Previously mentioned a report from EIA that said production in Eagle Ford would be over 1M bopd in October and November. That confused me.

Got myself straightened out.

That amount includes condensates as well as crude oil. Aha! I’m a little slow on the update sometimes, but I’m catching on. Slowly.

Continue reading “Forecasts for Eagle Ford production”

Eagle Ford production passes the 1M bopd level in October?

The Energy Information Administration released a report about 2 weeks ago reporting their estimates of what production will be in 6 major fields for October and November.

Continue reading “Eagle Ford production passes the 1M bopd level in October?”

More good stuff on surveillance – 11-1-13

Here is my fifth list of good stuff on our surveillance society that I’d like talk about but only have time to recommend with a quick comment.

Washington Post – NSA infiltrate links to Yahoo, Google data centers worldwide, Snowden documents say – Continue reading “More good stuff on surveillance – 11-1-13”

Role of the feds in the financial crisis

Back in September, Peter Wallison said Five Years Later: Don’t Mention the Feds – Washington and the media are peddling a narrative that discounts the government’s role in the financial crisis.

He makes the same point I’ve mentioned before. Specifically, that federal legislation required Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy subprime loans. Over time, the portion of their acquisitions that had to be subprime was increased.

There is a lot of blame to go around. The point I’m trying to make is the big banks don’t get 100% of it.

Continue reading “Role of the feds in the financial crisis”

North Dakota wind farm sells electricity from first phase of turbines

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Since I’ve been talking about progress of the slice-and-dice operation near Hettinger, N.D. in the southern part of the state, it’s only fair to mention they have made a big step forward. The site owner signed a contract with Montana-Dakota Utilities for the sale of all the electricity from the first phase of construction.

Best details of several articles I’ve seen this on the deal can be found at North American Wind Power:  Wind Works Signs PPA For Thunder Spirit Project in North Dakota.

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Free E-book to help you cope with the massive change around us. Oh, did I mention the price?

If you are trying to sort out all the massive change around us, you have just got to check out Look, Lead, Love, Learn: Four Steps to Better Business, a Better Life – and Conquering Complexity in the Process by Bill Sheridan.

On 10-29 and 10-30 it is free at Amazon.

How can we possible cope with all the massive change around us? One way is to open our brain to learn and be willing to constantly be learning more.

In an era of great change, the most important skill we will possess going forward is the ability to learn new skills.

Why not just coast to retirement? Continue reading “Free E-book to help you cope with the massive change around us. Oh, did I mention the price?”

Tolerance for all the serious disruptions from drilling depend on whether you get a check

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Having a well drilled near your house generates a lot of disruption. There is noise from the drilling, with something on the order of 2,000 truck trips and round-the-clock lights. I’ve been told you can feel the rumble in the ground when fracking is going on near you.

An article in the Wall Street Journal explains Energy Boom Puts Wells in America’s Backyards.

Continue reading “Tolerance for all the serious disruptions from drilling depend on whether you get a check”

Why shale is such a misunderstood game changer

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Million Dollar Way points to a must-read article at Rigzone:  Kemp: Why Shale Plays really Are Different.

The article describes why perennial skeptics have been so severely wrong about Bakken shale oil, why the rapid decline rate is actually attractive, and explains shale oil is more manufacturing-like than conventional oil.

The “optimists” were conservative

Continue reading “Why shale is such a misunderstood game changer”

Mali update – 10-25-13

Haven’t noticed much news from Mali lately, but that is probably a reflection on my observation skills, or lack thereof.

10-25 – France 24 – French forces to combat Mali ‘terrorists’, says Hollande – Troops from France, Mali, and the U.N. stepped up operations on Thursday in northern Mali against Islamists forces. The goal is to provide stability in advance of legislative elections the end of November.

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Pronunciation guide to Bakken and Eagle Ford

The point of this blog is to learn, so I have no problem admitting I have yet to catch on to lots of things, like how to pronounce Bakken and Eagle Ford.

Rockin’ the Bakken

Learned on my recent trip to North Dakota that Bakken is pronounced with an ‘ah’. It isn’t Bacon or Back-en.

Continue reading “Pronunciation guide to Bakken and Eagle Ford”

More background on Bakken drilling including well costs and EURs

Million Dollar Way points to a presentation by Continental Resources from October 2013 available on this page.

May as well disclose this is not an investment site. It would be foolish to make investment decisions based on what I say.

What I will do is comment on a few tidbits in the presentation that expand my knowledge with the idea that people reading my blog would likely learn as well.

Drilling costs

Falling costs of drilling are described on slide eight. Here’s the disclosed info: Continue reading “More background on Bakken drilling including well costs and EURs”

Scratching my head over that $13 billion settlement

(Cross-post from my other blog, Attestation Update.)

I’m confused by the reports that JP Morgan is close to settling most of the claims against the bank by the federal government in return for a payment of $13,000,000,000.

On one hand…

There are several parts of the long list of Morgan scandals that fully justify punishment, in my opinion. Consider manipulating Libor or prices in the energy market as just two examples.

Since the options of either public flogging or liberal application of feathers preceded by tar are not possible with a corporation, a decent fine would be a good start.

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Superb photos of Bakken – 9-13

Vern Whitten has superb photos of Bakken oil projects and communities. Having just returned from a road trip to Williston, I can appreciate his work much more now.

Here are two batches of his photos from September 2013:

(Hat tip: Million Dollar Way)