Wall Street firm Goldman Sachs made the term “BRICs” famous in a 2003 research report.

The European Commission is backing a complaint over US biofuel subsidies launched by the European Biodiesel Board.This from the Britain’s The Guardian newspaper:

Washington will be asked this week to answer allegations that subsidies amounting to 11p a litre on B99 [biodiesel with up to 1% petroleum added] exports from the US, plus “splash-and-dash” operations being conducted through the US, represent unfair competition.

Asset-based investments now dominate the ASX in market value. The mining sector is worth $406 billion in market cap. Financials have fallen to $403 billion. The king is dead. Long live the king.

Nathan Tinkler is a pawn in the strategic chess match for Australia’s resource wealth. But he’s a pawn as rich as a king. And he owes it all to coal.

Costs for solar thermal energy will be cheaper than coal as soon as 2020, according to a report from the US Department of Energy, making one solar ETF a great way to profit.

Google, Chevron and Goldman are all betting that this prediction is correct. This from Bloomberg:

Unlike photovoltaic solar panels that convert sunlight to electricity, solar thermal focuses sunrays with mirrors to heat oil in glass pipes to about 700 degrees Fahrenheit (370 degrees Celsius).

Liquid coal — synthetic fuel produced from coal — could make a big dent in the Defense Department’s energy bill, as it struggles to find alternatives to sky-high crude oil prices.

This from The Wall Street Journal:

With oil’s multi-year ascent showing no signs of stopping — crude futures set another record Tuesday, closing at $129.07 a barrel in New York trading — energy security has emerged as a major concern for the Pentagon.

What will happen when there is less oil? U.S. oil demand will fall, whether anybody likes it or not.

The PowerShares Clean Energy ETF (PBW) debuted in April 2005.

One forgotten corner of the world is set to profit massively from soaring global energy prices.

Crude oil is grabbing the headlines but it’s coal and uranium that together provide nearly half the world’s power.