Spotlight: Texas wind energy: tax breaks, transmission lines key to growth

Texas became the nation's most prolific generator of wind power in the past decade, but the industry's future growth will depend on tax incentives to make it cost competitive and new transmission lines to get electricity to consumers.Energy industries ; Tax incentives

Noteworthy: energy: oil, gasoline price spikes unlikely in 2009

Energy industries ; Petroleum industry and trade ; Petroleum products - Prices ; Gasoline - Prices

Noteworthy: oil markets: Saudis abandon WTI price as benchmark

Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company no longer uses West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil as its pricing benchmark. Saudi Aramco, the third largest U.S. oil supplier, switched to the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI) in January.Petroleum industry and trade ; Petroleum products - Prices ; Saudi Arabia

Noteworthy: natural gas: glitches point to inflated output data

Natural gas production and consumption data have been drifting apart. Production should equal consumption plus increases or decreases in storage, but sampling and estimation errors typically result in slight discrepancies. Seeing these gaps rise, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) implemented a new methodology with the release of February's production data that should ensure greater accuracy. Estimates for the prior 12 months were revised as well.Natural gas ; Sampling (Statistics)