Analysis

The Main Reason Behind the Energy Crisis in Europe…

September 27, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Why Europe Loves Natural Gas

One of the main factors driving the energy crisis in Europe is the rise in natural gas prices.

Europe loves natural gas. It gets about a quarter of its energy from it.

And what’s not to love?

It’s a superior form of fuel to oil and coal because of its energy density.

Natural gas is versatile. You can use it to heat your home or to spin a turbine and produce electricity. You can use it to power home cooking appliances and vehicles.

You can also use it to make fertilizer. And that’s crucial for the food production industry, as I wrote a few months ago.

Natural gas also produces less pollution than some other fuels. It emits about half as much carbon dioxide as coal, for example.

The upshot is that European nations wanted to move away from the dirtier, polluting fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, and, in some cases (think Germany), nuclear. So it had every incentive to fall in love with natural gas.

But there was a problem…

You see, there are two ways to move natural gas around. The first is by sea, using liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers.

This option requires an export facility to chill the natural gas down until it becomes liquid. It is then pumped onto these giant boats and shipped across the world.

Then on the other end, you need an import terminal to re-gasify it. All this infrastructure takes billions to make and years to construct.

The second option is much simpler. It involves transporting natural gas via pipeline.

Europe chose the easier way. It imported natural gas from Russia through pipelines.

Russia was right next door, after all. And it produced lots of natural gas.

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From Nord Stream to No Stream

Until recently, Russia was a major exporter of natural gas to the rest of Europe. Last year, the European Union (EU) got roughly 45% of its imported natural gas from Russia, according to the International Energy Agency.

Russian gas reaches Europe via a complex network of pipelines running through eastern Europe.

The most important pipeline is Nord Stream 1. It’s approximately 1,200 kilometers long and runs under the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany. Up to 170 million cubic meters of gas can flow through Nord Stream 1 daily.

Since it became operational in 2011, more than 441 billion cubic meters of Russian gas have flowed to Europe via Nord Stream 1.

In 2021, Europe imported 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia. Nearly 40% – 59 billion cubic meters – came through Nord Stream 1.

Nord Stream 1 is owned and operated by Nord Stream AG, whose majority shareholder is the Russian state company Gazprom.

For years, Nord Stream 1 has embodied the tacit deal between Russia and the European Union.

Russia was willing to supply copious amounts of natural gas at favorable prices. It developed infrastructure to take its gas to Europe.

Europe built industries that depend on that cheap supply of Russian gas. And industrial powerhouses, like Germany, built their entire economies around it.

But then, earlier this year, Russia went to war with Ukraine. That changed everything.

The EU slapped Russia with unprecedented sanctions. Russia retaliated by cutting the flow of natural gas via Nord Stream 1 by about 60%.

Then during its annual scheduled maintenance this summer, the pipeline flow dropped to zero. When it came back online, it came back at 40% capacity before dropping to 20%.

Then, at the end of August, Russia shut down the pipeline again, supposedly for maintenance. This shutdown was to last three days. But at writing, the pipeline remains offline.

Russia’s Endgame Could Mean Lights Out for Europe

As a result of all these actions, the European gas price went parabolic this summer. At one point, it cost $340 per megawatt-hour (MWh). That’s 312% higher than in January 2022, before Russia invaded Ukraine.

You can see the huge spike in natural gas prices that coincided with the Nord Stream 1 shutdown in the chart below.

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Now, while the price has dropped back somewhat in recent weeks, as Europe secures alternative supplies, the uncertainty surrounding their natural gas supply is a huge concern for the eurozone countries.

Consider this…

At about $12 per megawatt-hour (MWh) in November 2021, the eurozone’s energy import costs were $200 billion. That’s 1.6% of its GDP.

If gas settles at about $200 per MWh, this number will increase by roughly $700 billion to 7% of GDP.

At $300 per MWh, it would rise by about $900 billion. That’s a crippling 8.5% of its GDP.

So, Russia’s endgame is simple – to keep gas prices as high as possible to inflict maximum pain on Europe, so it eases off on sanctions.

Energy Rations Becoming a Reality

The way things are going, it looks inevitable that Europe will have to ration gas and energy come winter.

Germany is already discussing its options. German politicians are trying to decide how German industry will be prioritized. Difficult questions are being asked.

Questions like… Who gets the gas when there is a shortage? Who has to close the shop?

But whichever way they slice it, it will likely end up plunging Europe’s largest economy into crisis.

And if that happens, the entire European Union – and potentially the entire world – is in trouble.

Tomorrow, in the second part of this two-part essay, I’ll show you how to turn rising energy prices into profits in your portfolio.

Regards,

Nomi Prins
Editor, Inside Wall Street with Nomi Prins

[Nomi Prins: 10x Gains on a Small Firm Disrupting a Critical American Industry]

Profit from California’s Aggressive Climate Change Laws…

July 19, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Under the umbrella of the state’s California Air Resources Board (CARB), which is a sort of “clean air agency” that was established under Ronald Reagan while he was governor, California has been instituting a variety of programs and legislation that puts the state in the pole position of trillion-dollar economies transitioning to a cleaner energy economy.

Here are a few examples:

The Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction bill, which required California to reduce its overall greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, appointing CARB to develop policies (ultimately including the state’s cap-and-trade program) to achieve this goal
Renewable Energy Procurement bill, which requires the state to procure 60% of all electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and 100% from carbon-free sources by 2045, double the energy efficiency of existing buildings, and allow greater electric utility investment in electric vehicle charging infrastructure
Sustainable Transportation Planning bill, which set regional greenhouse gas emission reduction targets for passenger vehicles and requires agencies to assess and mitigate the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) impacts of new developments
Energy Storage bill, which requires electric utilities to install minimum levels of grid-scale energy storage infrastructure
Electric Vehicle Charging bill, which requires local governments to develop streamlined ordinances for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Advanced Clean Cars Program, which was designed to reduce greenhouse gas and smog-causing emissions from California cars, including vehicle performance standards and manufacturer requirements
Green Building Standard program, which was designed to reduce the energy use of California buildings, including energy efficiency standards for new construction and retrofits for existing buildings
Low Carbon Fuel Standard program, which requires transportation fuel producers to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions intensity of their products, from extraction to refining and end use
Renewables Portfolio Standard, which is a statewide requirement that electricity providers procure 33% of energy from renewable sources by 2020 and 60% of total electricity by 2030. It's worth noting that the state exceeded its 2020 goal after data showed that 59% of the state’s electricity came from renewable and zero-carbon sources in 2020.

Now, I understand that some folks don’t think much of these types of programs and laws that seek to address climate change.

And that’s fine.

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To be honest, I really don’t care what your thoughts are on climate change-related laws and mandates because I’m not here to convince you to hug trees or recycle. I’m here to convince you that if you play it right, you can make a lot of money by investing in the companies that are going to benefit from California’s very aggressive clean energy and climate change laws — especially now that some of those laws are about to get even more aggressive.

You see, in an effort to counter the Supreme Court's recent decision to restrict the EPA’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, California is now making moves to become carbon neutral by 2035 — which is 10 years ahead of the state’s current target. And some have suggested that the state may also try to reach its 100% clean energy portfolio by 2030, which would be five years ahead of schedule.

A lofty goal, to be sure, but not impossible to reach.

In fact, earlier this year, on May 8, California produced enough renewable electricity to meet 103% of consumer demand.

So much renewable electricity was generated that day that the California Independent System Operator even exported some of it to other western states.

Still, in order to speed up the state's renewable energy goals, it will need to build solar and wind projects three times faster than they’re being built now, and battery storage projects need to be built eight times faster.

I’m not fully convinced that the state will be able to pull this off, but I do know enough about California’s aggressive climate change mitigation strategies to understand that those leading the charge here are going to make a very serious effort. This, of course, will result in certain renewable energy projects and technologies getting a very serious shot of steroids.

Translation: Savvy investors are about to make a ton of cash.

Might as well be you, right?

[Nomi Prins: 10x Gains on a Small Firm Disrupting a Critical American Industry]

To a new way of life and a new generation of wealth…

Jeff Siegel

Massive Government Investment in Renewables on the Way…

May 16, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Governments Rushing Into Renewables

Last October, global governments met in Scotland for the COP26 United Nations Climate Change Conference. There, they agreed on several key climate change and carbon emissions goals.

Now, I know not everyone feels the same way about climate change. But no matter what your views are on environmental matters, what’s coming down the tracks brings with it a huge opportunity to profit…

See, global governments put a price tag of up to $150 trillion on their plans to reach COP26 goals.

More recently, the war in Ukraine has been a major catalyst in their push for renewable energy and related technologies…

In March, the U.S. banned Russian oil, liquefied natural gas, and coal imports.

At the time, the European Union (E.U.) treaded softly.

It outlined a plan to become independent from all Russian fossil fuels “well before 2030.” And it announced plans to triple its renewable energy capacity by 2030.

But last month, it stepped things up a gear. It banned Russian coal imports.

[Confession: PhD Economist says “Used to think a crash was coming…”]

And last week, it proposed phasing out Russian crude oil within the next six months.

That’s significant… Earlier this year, the E.U. accounted for 71% of Russian fossil fuel exports.

If this proposal gets voted into law, it will undoubtedly lead to fuel shortages and price hikes across the bloc.

So the E.U.’s 27 member countries must now find alternative ways to power their economies… fast.

But it’s not just in Europe where the effects of the energy crisis are being felt…

Here in the U.S., the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data shows that energy costs have risen by 30% in the last 12 months. Gasoline is up 43%. And fuel oil is up 80%.

And if the E.U. goes ahead with its Russian oil ban, we can expect further price increases here. That’s because any sanctions have global ramifications on oil and gas prices.

So the race to ramp up production from renewable energy sources is on, both here and across the pond…

The Cost of Our Carbon Footprint

That’s where our New Energy theme comes in. It covers everything from renewable energy to cleaner infrastructure.

Essentially, New Energy is about reducing our carbon footprint. There’s a big push to cut back on carbon dioxide emissions, and to replace them with less harmful alternatives.

Perhaps one of the main reasons governments and industry alike are paying attention is that there is now a cost associated with our carbon emissions and consumption.

The airline industry is a great example. If you’ve booked a flight on Google Flights recently, you’ve probably noticed this:

Google shows you how much carbon dioxide each flight will emit. And it compares it with average emissions. Airlines will be charged for these emissions.

To stay competitive, the world has to transition to new sources of energy that emit less carbon.

The world’s governments have accepted that climate change is real. And this is unleashing a massive new investment trend.

$750 billion was spent on clean energy technologies and efficiency worldwide in 2021.

And as we’ve been telling you, the White House has allocated $100 billion to clean energy projects under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

We’ve already shown you several ways to profit from the increasing investment in this sector.

But it’s not just governments that are putting their money where their mouths are…

[Former Goldman Sachs Exec: “America’s problems explained in ONE chart”]

Private Money Following Public Investment

The search for alternative energy isn’t just a political battle cry. It’s something even the largest oil companies are embracing.

Traditional energy companies are rethinking their strategies.

For example, BP has committed to shrinking its oil and gas production by 40%. It plans to invest $5 billion per year in low-emission businesses. Recently, it spent $220 million on a pipeline of 9 gigawatts (GW) of solar projects in the United States.

And oil and gas company, Total, invested $2.5 billion in an Indian renewable energy company. It aims to have 35 GW of gross renewable energy generation capacity by 2025 (up from around 9 GW today).

So with massive government investment in renewables on the way, more of the big energy companies are likely to follow suit…

Traditional Energy Won’t Disappear Overnight

Now, traditional energy won’t just disappear overnight…

The chart below comes from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). It tracks the trend of energy consumption needs globally through 2050.

And it shows the growth in renewable energy (blue line at the top) as well as traditional energy.

As you can see, the projection is for a 50% growth in the New Energy space.

And we’re already seeing rising demand. 2021 was another record year for renewable energy, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The world added a record 295 GW of new renewable power capacity in 2021. That was despite the pandemic and rising costs for raw materials globally.

Now, from the chart above, we can see that traditional energy consumption will remain more or less flat.

But even in traditional energy production, carbon-neutral technologies will play a bigger and bigger role.

Even minor adjustments to their processes and maintenance routines could help companies reduce their energy consumption.

Public and Private Investment Create Massive Opportunity

This transition to New Energy represents a windfall magnet for you. As I mentioned earlier, up to $150 trillion is about to flow into this sector.

As we’ve been showing you, global governments are backing the New Energy transition.

And even the traditional fossil-fuel giants are coming on board.

This does not mean that oil and gas will go away, or that I will ignore opportunities in the traditional energy space.

But as the energy crisis unfolds… and the E.U. and the rest of the world exerts more and more pressure on Russia… I will pay close attention to New Energy companies.

For now, I recommend keeping an eye on the best emerging energy sources. These include wind, solar, geothermal, next-generation nuclear, and carbon-capture coal.

And I’ll be sure to let you know how to invest as this trend develops. So stay tuned…

Regards,

Nomi Prins
Editor, Inside Wall Street with Nomi Prins

P.S. Millions of Americans are looking for ways to reduce their energy bills. And it’s no wonder… with energy costs up 30%, gasoline up 43%, and fuel oil up 80% in the last twelve months, according to the latest U.S. inflation figures.

The war in Ukraine is the latest catalyst in the energy crisis story… Global governments are quickly shifting gears to focus on alternative energy sources.

But there’s another huge event coming up that will put this trend into overdrive. In fact, it will shake the energy market to its core.

And the best part: If you know where to look, you could double… or even triple your money over the next twelve months.

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This Metal Is Vital for a Secure Energy Future

April 4, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Russia’s Grip on Europe

Russia’s dominance over global energy markets has expanded significantly under Vladimir Putin.

The European Union imports nearly half its natural gas from Russia. This gas fuels Europe’s economy and heats its homes.

And that dependency has grown in recent years. In 2021, 45% of total E.U. gas imports came from Russia. That was up from 26% in 2010.

The three largest economies in the E.U. import huge amounts of their gas supplies from Russia:

Germany: 55%
Italy: 45%
France: 17%

Russia also accounts for 10% of the world’s oil supply. It exports almost 5 million barrels of crude oil and 2.8 million barrels of refined products every day.

Most of that goes to countries in Europe.

Finland and Hungary get almost all their oil from Russia. Poland gets more than 55%. Germany and the Netherlands get upward of 40%.

Europe is dangerously addicted to Russia’s energy.

Putin knows this. Recently, he threatened to shut off Russia’s pipelines.

Now, I believe it’s unlikely he will follow through on this threat. After all, his country relies heavily on the income from its energy exports. From his perspective, with a war to finance, he can’t afford to shut off that income stream.

But European countries are (finally) realizing that they cannot rely on a supplier who explicitly threatens them.

And they’re taking action to reduce their dependence on Russian oil and gas…

[Exclusive: Tim Bohen – Last Call Before Elon’s “Project X” SHOCKS the World (Again)]

Dashing into New Energy at Lightning Speed

The European Union plans to cut its reliance on Russian gas by two-thirds this year.

And here in the U.S., President Biden announced an immediate ban on all Russian oil imports.

Here’s the bottom line… Global powers are determined to reduce their dependence on Russian energy.

So, they need to find alternative sources of energy… fast.

And that’s where the opportunity for us lies.

Earlier this month, the European Union outlined a plan to become independent from all Russian fossil fuels “well before 2030.” It plans to triple its renewable energy capacity by 2030.

Frans Timmermans, the European Commission vice-president responsible for the European Green Deal, promised to “dash into renewable energy at lightning speed.”

Germany is moving swiftly towards alternative energy sources.

Previously, it aimed to shift to 100% renewable power supply by 2050. And it is phasing out its nuclear power plants. The last three reactors are set to go offline later this year.

But just days after Russia invaded Ukraine, the E.U.’s top economy ramped up its timeline. It now aims to generate all the country’s electricity from renewable sources by 2035. That includes wind and solar.

And it has allocated an extra 200 billion euros to expedite the new agenda.

Energy Security Is Just As Important to the U.S.

What about the U.S.?

Thankfully, our nation is far less dependent on Russian oil than Europe. In 2021, about 8% of U.S. oil imports came from Russia.

Now, that’s not insignificant. But it meant the U.S. was in a much stronger position than Europe to announce a complete ban on its energy imports from Russia.

But oil is traded in a global market. So, if oil prices go up further because of what is happening in Europe, Americans will feel the pinch at the pump even more than they do today.

In other words, energy security is just as important for the U.S. as it is for Europe.

And one way to guarantee our energy supply is to develop domestic sources of renewable energy.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law President Biden signed in November 2021 earmarks $100 billion for clean energy projects.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is an added impetus to the rollout of any projects that will help the U.S. secure its energy supply into the future.

This Metal Is Vital for a Secure Energy Future

A lot of that money will flow into the raw materials we need to build a cleaner and more secure energy future.

Commodities will play a massive role in the New Energy revolution we’ve been telling you about. Copper will take center stage.

The world will need a whole lot of copper to make the transition to a greener economy a reality.

The global wind power buildout is a case in point.

Right now, offshore wind is responsible for less than 0.5% of global electricity capacity. But the number of annual offshore wind installations is expected to grow 13-fold by 2030. This will generate demand for up to 7 million tonnes of copper.

Meanwhile, many other renewable energy systems use as much as 12 times more copper than traditional fossil fuel-powered systems. These include solar, hydro, thermal, and air source heat pumps.

The global electric vehicle (EV) race is another essential piece in copper’s story.

Currently, 10% of new vehicles sold in the world’s major markets are electric. Bloomberg estimates that by 2030, that figure will rise to about 50%.

Copper is used extensively in EV batteries, wiring, and charging stations. In fact, each EV uses up to 83 kilograms of copper. That’s more than three times the 23 kilograms used in an internal-combustion-engine vehicle.

And copper is a vital component of the wiring used in charging stations.

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A Simple Way to Profit

The global transition to cleaner energy and EVs will play a vital role in future copper demand growth.

And what’s happening in Ukraine right now has lit a fire under governments worldwide. They are determined to do whatever it takes to speed up these trends and reduce their reliance on Russian energy.

It’s the perfect set up for higher copper prices.

A great way to position yourself in copper is with the United States Copper Index Fund ETF (CPER). The fund closely tracks the price of copper, offering convenient exposure.

Happy investing, and I’ll be in touch again soon.

Regards,

Nomi Prins

Editor, Inside Wall Street with Nomi Prins

Renewables Will Heat up in 2022

March 31, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

In this Article:

Where will all these unicorns come from?
Renewables Will Heat up in 2022
Invest Like a Wall Street Titan on a Main Street Budget

Earlier this week, I told you the stock sell-off we’re seeing today is setting off a boom in private markets.

According to Fortune, more than 80% of venture capital and private equity firms say they plan to raise capital in 2022. That’s up from 75% in 2021.

And the amount of money they’re raising is increasing. In 2021, private equity funds raised at least $733 billion globally, surpassing every previous year on record.

This year, they’re forecast to raise $952 billion.

The rush from the public markets into the private markets makes sense for these Big Money players when you consider private companies also have lower volatility than publicly traded companies… and perform better during challenging times.

In 2021, the pace of new unicorns (a private company that reaches a $1 billion valuation) increased considerably, reaching an average of two new unicorns minted per day. And I expect that activity to increase this year.

That begs the question: Where will all these unicorns come from?

The answer is: Clean energy.

Now, I’m a capitalist. So I don’t look at investment ideas just because they make us feel good. But regardless of what you think about “clean energy,” it’s the hottest investment trend in the United States right now.

Renewables Will Heat up in 2022

Before any bias you might have about “clean energy” comes rushing out, let me be clear…

Today’s clean energy industry is different.

The smartest minds in technology are working in it… and the smartest minds in finance are investing in it.

Larry Fink is the CEO of Blackrock, the largest asset manager in the world with $10 trillion in assets under management.

Here’s an excerpt from his annual letter published in January 2022:

The next 1,000 unicorns won’t be search engines or social media companies, they’ll be sustainable, scalable innovators – startups that help the world decarbonize and make the energy transition affordable for all consumers.

Think about that.

Fink is one of the wealthiest, most well-connected men on the planet. He’s not some starry-eyed kid or a tree hugger who wants to “change the world.” This is one of the most influential money men on the planet.

He goes to bed thinking about money. And he wakes up thinking about money.

And he knows there is a stadium-sized stack of money to be made in clean energy technology.

According to Allied Market Research, the 2020 value of renewable energy was $881 billion… and projected to reach nearly $2 trillion by 2030.

Renewable stocks are outperforming the broader market, returning approximately 159% since the end of 2019 compared to the S&P 500’s 29% within the same span.

[Revealed: This Tech Expert Finally Found the Company that’s Behind Elon's New Project]

But it’s in the private market where you stand to make the biggest gains from the clean energy trend.

Take the electric vehicle (EV) battery tech company, QuantumScape, for example. Famed investor Jeremy Grantham invested $12.5 million in the company while it was private. QuantumScape went public in 2020 via a SPAC merger… and his stake swelled to $638 million before the year was up.

That’s a 5,005% return. That far outweighs the potential 719% gain the average investor could’ve hoped to make by buying into QuantumScape when it announced its SPAC merger.

Here’s another example. In 2017, Saudi businessman Abdul Latif Jameel stumbled upon on the EV startup named Rivian. He made several private investments in the company at an estimated valuation between $1–2 billion.

Rivian went public in November 2021 at an $83 billion valuation… netting potential returns between roughly 4,000–8,000%. Within weeks of the IPO, Abdul was sitting on a potential return of 14,900%… enough to turn every $1,000 invested into $150,000.

Meanwhile, regular investors that got in on IPO day saw peak gains of 80%… enough to turn $1,000 into $1,800.

As you can see, investing in clean energy companies before they become public is how you can potentially move the needle on your financial life without putting your current lifestyle at risk.

But if you didn’t know the wealthy insiders behind these deals like Grantham or Jameel did, you wouldn’t have been able to invest in them. So I’ve made it my mission to change that.

Invest Like a Wall Street Titan on a Main Street Budget

Ever since my early days on Wall Street, it’s driven me crazy. As a retail investor, you couldn’t access the private market. Legally, there wasn’t any way to get into these deals.

Finally, the SEC has cut through the red tape allowing the public to get in.

But cutting the red tape doesn’t mean Wall Street will say, “Come on in!”

They’re not going to welcome you like a long-lost brother… or roll out the red carpet and kiss you on both cheeks.

The best deals are still only found in one place. And that’s on the “inside” of the market.

To find these deals, you’ve got to move in the right circles of venture capitalists, billionaires, and influential deal makers. That’s where you find the best deals.

[Alert: Warren Buffett already invested $15 billion in this trend… said he’s ready to invest $15 billion more]

The good news is – and it’s going to sound like I’m bragging, but I promise you I’m not – I’m fortunate enough to be in that position.

I’ve gone to those events. I know many of the billionaires in the early investing space. I’ve been on their private jets, attended their private parties, and am on a first-name basis with many of the top dealmakers operating in the market today.

And recently, I’ve uncovered what I believe could be the next unicorn in the clean energy space.

This company in the American heartland says it’s found a way to produce environmentally friendly oil without drilling or fracking.

After vetting it, Wall Street powerhouse JPMorgan cut a check to be its largest shareholder… I’m talking about the biggest bank in the United States.

JPMorgan is behind some of the biggest private deals, including Facebook, Tesla, and EV maker Rivian. And some of its deals have returned 47x, 100x, and 159x.

That last one is enough to turn $1,000 into $160,000.

And remember… Regardless of what you think about clean energy, it’s the hottest investment trend in the U.S. right now.

Avoiding those investments because of personal bias only hurts your financial future.

JPMorgan will still be this company’s largest shareholder… and it’ll still cash out its shares for bigger gains than investors who bought too late… or didn’t buy at all.

Which side of that trade will you be on?

Let the Game Come to You!

Teeka Tiwari
Editor, Palm Beach Daily

[Exclusive: Louis Navellier – The #1 Electric Vehicle (EV) Battery Stock of 2022]

Will the Top 10 Energy Stocks Continue to Outperform in 2022?

January 24, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Here are our top 10 energy plays from 2021…

Matador Resources
Global X Uranium ETF
Energy Fuels
Orocobre Limited
Chevron
Uranium Energy Corp.
Fuel Tech
Graphene Manufacturing Group
Skyharbour Resources
FuelPositive

Dear Reader,

When the market crashed in March 2020, simpleminded market “experts” either sold everything and sat on the sidelines in the fetal position, scared of their own shadows, or they sold everything and bought gold. Shocker!

In the short term, buying gold paid off, even though it was a predictable reaction for the soft-headed. It was a conga line of the brain-dead and spineless shuppets.

“Go into gold… go into gold… go into gold…”

But ever since, gold and gold stocks have been dead money. It's why our natural resource expert, Luke Burgess, has pivoted to other commodities like oil and gas, phosphate, and now tin.

Retreating into gold as a safe haven was always a sucker's bet.
Let me explain…

I told my entire company and our readers to buy the crash in March 2020. I was met with skepticism. But I kept to my guns, because I’ve been through a few catastrophic crashes in my career.

What has happened since?

This:

(source: energyandcapital.com)

[Alert: This “metal fuel” is the cheapest, most powerful energy source on the planet. And it has nothing to do with wind, solar, or any renewables]

This is a chart of the Dow versus gold stocks in 2021.

Not even close.

And our performance and advice in these very pages prove why you continue to read us day after day.

We’ve made great calls in the past 12–24 months on a wide variety of different companies in different industries.

We’ve had record-breaking options profits, from Starbucks to semiconductors, from our emerging ace trader, Sean McCloskey. Sean also killed it in the options space with oil and gas.

We’ve prophesied the flourishing of new medical treatments and technologies, from psilocybin to genetic engineering.

But most impressive of all, our energy plays outperform anything anyone else is predicting.

Take a look at this chart of oil and gas stocks versus gold stocks for the past 12 months:

(source: energyandcapital.com)

Gold stocks are off to a horrible start in 2022 — already down nearly 7% year to date.

[Discover: The “Quantum Leap” technology that could hand early investors an exceptional windfall of as much as 46,018%]

Oil and gas stocks? Up nearly 10% in 2022. They'll only get better as global economies continue to reopen after the idiotic and catastrophic lockdowns. It will be energy that leads the way.

And we are the “go-to” research firm when it comes to all things energy.

Here are our top 10 energy plays from 2021…

Matador Resources

Starting off our list at No. 10 is Matador Resources, which Keith Kohl at Energy Investor sold last June for a respectable 60% gain.

Matador Resources is an oil and natural gas company that operates primarily in the southwest United States. Of special note, it focuses a large part of its efforts on the Delaware Basin lobe of the Permian Basin, a huge oil reserve we’ve discussed before in Energy and Capital. It’s no surprise Matador made these gains as the oil industry recovers from the collapse in demand due to COVID and the Permian leads the return of U.S. oil production.

Global X Uranium ETF

Our Global X Uranium ETF play, courtesy of Jimmy Mengel at The Crow’s Nest, netted a very handsome 90% gain last year.

Sold on September 17, the ETF grew thanks to widespread interest in uranium mining and the nuclear industry. As small modular reactors continue to develop, the field is only likely to expand. That is why Global X is only the first of several uranium plays to make this list, but we’ll get to those later…

Energy Fuels

Energy Fuels, a play from Alex Koyfman’s Microcap Insider, is yet another uranium mining company. Coming in at No. 8, it earned a 146% gain.

Sold on January 8, 2021, Alex started the year off right with a gain of about seven times the previous year’s market average. It’ll be interesting to see whether we return to Energy Fuels, as we’ve discussed that uranium isn’t going anywhere. The company also mines vanadium and is breaking into the rare earth elements market, which would allow it to take advantage of growing demand for electric motor and battery technology for EVs.

[Major Buy Alert: America’s Next Energy Revolution Will Be Powered by “TriFuel-238”]

Orocobre Limited

Another play from Jimmy Mengel’s The Crow’s Nest, Orocobre Limited earned those readers who joined him in this venture a whopping 196% gain last October.

Orocobre focuses on lithium mining in Argentina, which carries with it the prospect of greater and greater profit as the world’s hunger for lithium-ion batteries only grows. On that note, please keep in mind that we’re not done with the company. Energy Investor's Keith Kohl, who first advised buying shares of Orocobre several years before Jimmy, is still holding on to the company at a current gain of 436%.

Chevron

Sean McCloskey at Naked Trades played the options game and played it well, earning 206% and 208% respectively on two back-to-back Chevron calls last October. That puts him in an enviable sixth place on our Angel Energy Top 10 list.

As these wins demonstrate, while Sean doesn’t break into energy often, when he does, he’s very successful.

Uranium Energy Corp.

Jason Simpkins, of Wall Street’s Proving Ground fame, sold Uranium Energy Corp. for a 259% gain last April! Incredible!

Another uranium mining company, Uranium Energy Corp. focuses its efforts on the southwest United States. UEC boasts control of a huge database of historic uranium exploration to assure that the projects it acquires have a lot to offer. Less than a month ago, it acquired Uranium One Americas and is now the largest uranium mining company in the U.S.

Fuel Tech

Another play from Microcap Insider’s Alex Koyfman, Fuel Tech netted readers 284%.

Fuel Tech specializes in emissions control for power plants and other polluting energy technologies. An essential part of today’s energy infrastructure, Fuel Tech assures that the air we breathe remains safe for us even as we keep the lights on. This is one of the important things to remember when investing in the energy industry and the reason why Fuel Tech made it to No. 4 on the list — it’s not just about investing in power plants or mines. There is just as much profit to be made in the background technologies and supporting innovations that make our energy infrastructure possible.

[Discover: The “Quantum Leap” technology that could hand early investors an exceptional windfall of as much as 46,018%]

Graphene Manufacturing Group

The third of Alex Koyfman’s recommendations to make it on the list, Microcap Insider made three different plays on Graphene Manufacturing Group last year, the highest of which made a 306% profit in a little over a month.

Graphene Manufacturing Group manufactures battery-grade graphene and produces its own state-of-the-art graphene aluminum-ion battery. This kind of technology will be essential to the future of energy as we move toward EVs and large-scale storage of renewable energy. GMG also makes other products, such as lubricants, coolants, and coatings, that help make sure energy production runs smoothly wherever it’s happening.

Skyharbour Resources

Another Jason Simpkins and Wall Street’s Proving Ground play, Skyharbour Resources is the final uranium mining company on this list and came in second place of all energy plays last year with gains of 311%!

As Jason wrote several months ago, there’s no way the U.S. or any other country can meet its climate goals without nuclear energy. This need and other factors, such as the numerous nuclear projects currently in development, raised the price of uranium over the last year. Skyharbour, which currently holds 14 uranium mining projects in the Athabasca Basin of Canada, was in the perfect position to profit. And if you were smart enough to join Jason, so were you.

FuelPositive

Topping it out in first place, the most lucrative energy play from Angel Publishing this year was FuelPositive. Recommended by Alex Koyfman in First Call, the company earned his readers a 757% GAIN! That’s over twice the profit of even the second-place energy pick!

First Call has been reporting on the revolutionary power of green ammonia fuel to upend transportation and agriculture as we know it for months now. Producing no CO2 but able to work within existing transportation infrastructures and internal combustion engines, FuelPositive’s tech has rightfully earned back incredible rewards for the investors who trusted in it. But despite the fact that many industries and governments are starting to bank on ammonia, almost no one in the mainstream media is discussing the role it has to play in making a greener world.

That’s why Angel Publishing and its newsletters are essential to any informed and intelligent investor.

[Major Buy Alert: America’s Next Energy Revolution Will Be Powered by “TriFuel-238”]

Eating What I Cook

Personally, your publisher did quite well with Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) and the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF (NYSE: MLPX).

On December 11, 2020, I purchased 500 shares of Exxon for $43.60. At the time of my purchase, the stock was yielding a 10% dividend.

Today, Exxon is paying a 5% dividend, and the stock is currently trading for $71.92 — a 52-week high — and going higher.

Three months prior to buying Exxon, I purchased 1,000 shares of MLPX for $17.63, a master limited partnership that’s super-diversified in oil and gas. But I specifically bought MLPX for its pipeline exposure to the Permian Basin.

It hasn’t disappointed. Today the stock trades for nearly $32 and yields nearly 9%. When I bought it, it was yielding a dividend in the midteens.

Oil and gas will continue to reward investors, but we have more — a lot more — in our investment pipeline in 2022.

And it’s exciting as hell.

The wolves are at the door,

Brian Hicks

The Real Cost of the Clean Energy Transition

January 19, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

In Focus:

Global Coal Consumption
The difference between valuation and monetization…
How much are we willing to pay?
Solutions already exist…

A reckoning in the energy sector is coming. One that is recursive and counterproductive. One that involves an increasing dissonance between intentions and actions.

It isn’t about how we will ultimately change our energy consumption, the “Big Shift” long prophesied. History's long arc will pan out one way or another. The problem is the idealized timeline we're being sold has nothing to back it up, and a chaotic transition is happening.

How much can we truly accomplish if we continue to tepidly attempt to replace historically cheap, abundant energy earlier than we absolutely have to? Can we admit how long it will take and how much it will demand of us?

We stare from one peak to another on the horizon. The path is steep and fraught with peril. We think the valley between is easy to traverse.

[The Forever Battery: Making Gas Guzzlers Obsolete]

We are woefully wrong.

Global coal consumption is surging even as it falls in developed nations. The two nations that hold over a third of the global population — China and India — will never stop buying more coal as long as it is cheaper than anything else. It will be.

The situation with natural gas is unsustainable in many corners of the world. No one is selling into the spot or contract-based markets in any way that will move prices down where natural gas costs the most. Even then, shipping it from producers to the neediest markets involves supply lines with little excess capacity.

For similar reasons, oil is sitting around $80 per barrel with little expectation of a meaningful drop in the foreseeable future.

In spite of the rapid percentage gains for EVs and renewables, they are a mere fraction of the larger equation. Ever-increasing energy demand wears away at any gains they make. The mining pollution and baked-in costs for “zero carbon” tech has revealed many companies as shams at worst and “lesser evils” at best.

We are insatiable.

What we’re really starting to reckon with is the difference between theory and application, valuation and monetization. The transition from lab to foundry, scientists to engineers, and viability to profitability.

We face endless issues we choose not to address that are destined to delay, diminish, and thus doom. All the sweeping proclamations from marble parapets by politicians do nothing.

The problem is our “Plan B” or lack thereof. If we buy into this concept that there is a single path forward, an approved list of power sources instead of a flexible mix, we will adhere to dogma instead of demand. We will vilify what we should embrace and further entrench this hypocrisy.

[New Battery Breakthrough: Could Revolutionize the $2 Trillion Automotive Industry]

We have barely begun to stress the system we have today, and the inflation is breaking nearly everything.

We were cajoled with dulcet tones through all means of media that this could be solved by a redistribution of capital, one way or another. The tenured residents of the ivory towers were confident that there was plenty of padding for any contingency. Some chose to think it would happen through the free market. Some chose to think that government-dictated mandates would herd us to a brighter future.

Both have been proven wrong. We're learning we should have worried far more about the transition. This should not be much of a surprise. Assumptions and idealism from the top down have always been divorced from reality in the energy sector.

How much are we willing to pay? Not just in dollars or euros or rupees or yuan. How much can this transition consume as inflation, and scarcity, and the reality of day-to-day costs fall short of best case scenarios?

These are the questions we must answer now, and few that intend to demand more of us are willing to address them or what they imply.

A society that depends on a lack of change — an assumption that what it exploits will remain static — is a decadent one.

It will cannibalize itself until it doesn’t have the energy or drive — figuratively or literally — to follow a different path. History is replete with once vibrant and thriving times that could not persist because what seemed like constants ended up being variables.

This is the reckoning we face in 2022, then the next year, then the next. Ever-increasing until we do something, anything, to reduce the pressure in a meaningful way.

There is a real cost if we continue to fail to address the realities we face, and it increases the longer we delude ourselves.

Solutions already exist, but they need time, money, and effort. Will capital markets properly reward them? Will investors fund them and reward their progress?

That we shall see. We will fall short in many ways, I'm sure. Our track record all but proves it.

2022 can be a pivotal year for the stock market to prove it can carve a path forward for the energy sector as central planners continue to fall short. We shall see if it does.

Take care,

Adam English

[Exclusive: Company Pioneering this New Battery could be the Investment of a Lifetime]

How to Profit from the Greening of the Blue Economy

January 18, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

The “blue economy” is going green… and it’s time investors took notice.

But first, what is the blue economy?

The World Bank defines it as the “sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems.”

The European Commission, in contrast, defines it as “all economic activities related to oceans, seas and coasts. It covers a wide range of interlinked established and emerging sectors.”

The blue economy supports many sectors, including aquaculture, coastal tourism, fisheries, shipbuilding, port activities and maritime transportation.

One of the largest sectors in the blue economy has been oil and gas production. And sadly, waste disposal – both intentional and unintentional – has been part of the blue economy too (at least by the European Commission’s definition of it). So has overfishing.

But now the blue economy is going green in many different ways.

The Greening of the Blue

The blue economy is starting to seriously take note of its environmental impact.

For example, areas that were once home to oil and gas rigs are increasingly being used as sites of offshore wind farms.

Additionally, excess energy from offshore wind can generate green hydrogen. That will power the world’s newest ships.

[The Forever Battery: Making Gas Guzzlers Obsolete]

Desalinization plants, many powered by renewable energy, will provide fresh water to irrigate arid regions. And floating solar arrays can now be found in oceans and other waters. Tidal and wave energy production are also gearing up.

But let me explain what’s really driving the greening of the blue economy. Investors are increasingly focused on companies that apply environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards to their businesses.

Over the last few years, the momentum of companies adopting ESG standards has increased. As of the end of 2020, 88% of public companies and 67% of privately owned companies had adopted some form of ESG initiatives.

Several Opportunities to Consider

The number of sectors and companies in the blue economy is so vast that the best way for investors to play it is through one or more of the exchange-traded funds (ETFs) focused on it.

Today, there are no blue economy ETFs that trade on U.S. indexes. However, there are a number of European ETFs that investors should have access to.

The first one I like is the BNP Paribas ECPI Global ESG Blue Economy ETF (France: BLUE). This ETF tracks the performance of the Global ESG Blue Economy Index, which is composed of companies involved in the blue economy.

The second is the Lyxor World Water UCITS ETF (London: WATC), an ETF that tracks the World Water CW Total Return Index. It invests in the 30 largest companies in the world that get at least 40% of their revenues from water-related activities. These include companies involved in infrastructure, utilities and water treatment.

[New Battery Breakthrough: Could Revolutionize the $2 Trillion Automotive Industry]

The size of the ETF has doubled during the last three years. And as of June 2021, it was valued at 1.02 billion British pounds, or about $1.38 billion.

Some investors may be interested in individual companies with a focus on the blue economy. There are three worth considering that trade on U.S. exchanges.

The United Utilities Group PLC (OTC: UU.L) is focused on reducing water leakages by 15% and water pollution by 20%.

Xylem (NYSE: XYL) uses artificial intelligence to reduce pipe failure costs by 80%.

And finally, Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) is a leader in water desalinization.

As the blue economy becomes greener, interest in these companies and others like them will only increase.

Investors might want to position their portfolios to take advantage of the changing blue economy sooner rather than later.

Good investing,

Dave

[Exclusive: Company Pioneering this New Battery could be the Investment of a Lifetime]

2022 Will Be a Strong Year for Green Energy

January 17, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

I’m a trader. I’m all about building systems and then watching them work in the wild. I love the intellectual rigor and — naturally — the profits that result.

Not every trade works out, of course, just as even Steph Curry misses the occasional 3-pointer!

But trading… like Steph Curry’s 3-point shooting … is a numbers game. If you find a process that works, you have to give it time to work.

The same holds true with longer-term investing themes. Not every investment works out on the time frame you hope. But if the theme is solid, you can keep coming back to it, even if some of the trades within that theme end up being duds.

Look at green energy. This is the future. It’s happening. I would go so far as to call it an inevitability. Every government in the world is pushing for cleaner energy initiatives, and some of the smartest minds in business are staking their futures on it.

It just makes sense.

High-minded idealism isn’t the reason the world is going green. It’s basic economics.

In 2018, the cost of generating new wind and solar energy dropped below the cost of generating power from existing coal plants for the first time.

[The Forever Battery: Making Gas Guzzlers Obsolete]

Green Energy Chart — (source:MoneyandMarkets.com)

That was three years ago, and prices haven’t stopped dropping. Solar and wind energy now slug it out with natural gas in a race to be the cheapest energy source.

Forget politics. Forget the midterm elections. Forget all of that noise. At the end of the day, money talks. And green energy delivers the goods cheaper, so its share of the grid will only continue to grow.

As of last year, renewable energy — including wind, solar hydroelectric and even biomass – already accounted for 23% of all utility power generated in the United States. Between 2040 and 2045, renewables will make up a majority of all energy produced.

2022 Will Be a Strong Year for Green Energy

Last year saw some of the bigger names in green energy stumble, particularly in the electric vehicle space.

Tesla Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA) has trended lower since early November, and many of the high-flying Chinese competitors have fared much worse. NIO Inc. (Nasdaq: NIO) lost more than half of its value since topping out earlier this year.

Total Returns: Tesla (TSLA) vs. Nio (NIO) 2021

[New Battery Breakthrough: Could Revolutionize the $2 Trillion Automotive Industry]

Likewise, solar stocks haven’t had a great run. The Invesco Solar ETF (NYSE: TAN) is down nearly 40% from its 52-week highs.

But here’s the deal. Many of the stocks in this space have worked out just fine, including several I recommended in Green Zone Fortunes.

I recommended a maker of energy-efficient power systems in June, and it’s up a good 24% already. And my stock for this month’s issue is a revolutionary battery maker that is up around 5%, with plenty of room to run higher.

My Green Zone Fortunes readers even banked a 53% gain on the second half of a position back in August after holding since my initial recommendation in July 2020. (We closed the first half of this position for a 124% gain after only five months!)

Again, not every trade works out. But in a powerful mega trend like this, we can wait for our moments and trade around them. Like Steph Curry, we can keep lobbing 3-pointers because we are confident that enough of them will drop.

And green energy is too big of a mega trend to ignore.

Join us now, and get ready for a life-changing 2022!

Adam O’Dell

Chief Investment Strategist

[Exclusive: Company Pioneering this New Battery could be the Investment of a Lifetime]

2022 Will be a Crucial Test for Biden’s Clean Energy Goals

January 11, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

America’s failing electric grids and clean energy goals will be key themes in the U.S. energy sector this year.
The coming months will also be a test for President Biden’s green energy policies, considering that his Build Back Better Act is now stalled in Congress.
Clean energy targets set by states are “going to be more difficult to achieve” without federal action.

The winter months will show whether state legislators and utilities have learned the lesson from last February’s Texas storm in ensuring grid reliability, while Democrats are scrambling to salvage President Joe Biden’s proposed Build Back Better Act. Grid reliability, states’ clean energy goals, and further federal action to advance renewable energy will be the key themes in the U.S. electricity sector in 2022.

The Biden Administration announced last year ambitious goals to promote green energy, including decarbonizing the electricity grid by 2035. But issues with grid access, flexibility, and reliability need to be addressed by states and the federal government sooner rather than later to avoid another deadly storm like the one in Texas in February 2021.

Despite newly introduced regulations to avoid power failures, the Texas grid remains vulnerable to blackouts in case of a repeat of the February Freeze, a report by the North American Electric Reliability Corp warned at the end of last year.

According to the 2021-2022 Winter Reliability Assessment report, Texas risks a 37-percent reserve margin deficit in case of a harsh winter, NERC said.

A cold spell this winter could test the Texas grid and whether the state legislators have managed—through legislation—to help the Lone Star State avoid a repeat of last February’s disaster.

The coming months will also be a test for President Biden’s green energy policies, considering that his Build Back Better Act is now stalled in Congress.

The outlook of U.S. renewable markets and economic growth became even more uncertain just before Christmas, when Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a crucial vote in a divided Senate, said he would not support President Biden’s bill. Democrats are now trying to salvage the bill and may be forced to drop some policy priorities if they want Senator Manchin’s decisive vote and the bill to pass.

[The Forever Battery: Making Gas Guzzlers Obsolete]

The Biden Administration believes a carbon-free electricity grid by 2035 is an achievable goal. Many analysts believe it is not.

The stalled Build Back Better legislation will impact the future renewable energy installations in the United States.

The U.S. solar industry is set to be torn between huge opportunities and major stumbling blocks in the coming months and years, and it will likely see a wild “solar coaster” ride in the next few years, Wood Mackenzie said in the middle of December.

Supply chain setbacks and constraints could delay many projects and put gigawatts of capacity additions at risk, Michelle Davis, Principal Analyst, Solar, at WoodMac, says. But on the other hand, if Congress passes the Build Back Better Act, the U.S. solar industry will receive a shot in the arm with the multiple clean energy incentives set in the legislation, including an extension of the investment tax credit (ITC), Davis added.

Due to the opposing bullish and bearish dynamics, near-term U.S. solar capacity is set for the largest fluctuations since 2016, when the ITC almost expired, WoodMac’s analyst noted.

The U.S. Department of Energy insisted in its Solar Futures Study in early December that by 2035, solar energy has the potential to power 40 percent of the nation’s electricity, drive deep decarbonization of the grid, and employ as much as 1.5 million people—without raising electricity prices.

However, the study also shows that by 2035 the United States “would need to quadruple its yearly solar capacity additions and provide 1,000 GW of power to a renewable-dominant grid.”

[Exclusive: Company Pioneering this New Battery could be the Investment of a Lifetime]

Electric vehicles also received major policy support in 2021, and major automakers are now racing to build battery plants across the U.S. in a sign that the car manufacturing industry has started to embrace the EV future. It now needs to turn American consumers into fans of electric vehicles, which will take time.

In 2021, more states adopted clean energy and/or net-zero emissions targets, and others are expected to join the list this year and in the coming years. North Carolina, Oregon, and Illinois adopted legislation in 2021 to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, or by 2040 in Oregon’s case.

Clean energy targets set by states are “going to be more difficult to achieve” without federal action, Warren Leon, Executive Director of the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA), told E&E News.

Overall, the year is set to be a crucial test for the Biden Administration’s clean policy goals.