"Beacon Power Corp., an energy storage company that received $43 million in backing from the U.S. program that supported failed Fremont solar panel manufacturer Solyndra, filed for bankruptcy after struggling to raise private financing."
"The Obama administration on Thursday unveiled its road map for solar energy development, directing large-scale industrial projects to 285,000 acres of desert land in the western U.S. while opening 20 million acres of the Mojave for new development."
"DALLAS -- Environmental groups have notified the Energy Futures Holdings Corp. and its subsidiary, Luminant Generation Company, that they intend to sue the company for more than 38,000 alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at two Texas coal-fired power plants."
"SINGAPORE -- Oil prices jumped above $92 a barrel Thursday in Asia after European leaders agreed on a plan to reduce Greece's debt burden."
"BP won approval from the Interior Department to drill its first exploratory oil well in the Gulf of Mexico since the blowout of its Macondo well a year and a half ago touched off the country's worst offshore environmental disaster."
"The US Department of Interior plans to integrate the responsibilities of two sub-agencies with diverse portfolios overseeing surface mining, federal land management, oil and natural gas royalty collection and hard-rock mining, among other areas, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Wednesday."
"Three environmental groups sued the U.S. government on Tuesday, challenging claims in a State Department report that said a proposed Canada-to-Texas oil sands pipeline poses little risk to endangered species because spills on the line were unlikely."
"WASHINGTON -- A former Energy Department official linked to the failed Solyndra solar enterprise deal continues to raise campaign money for President Obama and helped plan a fundraising luncheon that the president will attend in San Francisco on Tuesday."
"The U.S. Senate late Thursday confirmed John Bryson to be U.S. Commerce Secretary after Republicans opposed to his environmental record lifted a hold on the vote.
On May 31, 2011, President Barack Obama nominated Bryson as Secretary of Commerce to succeed Gary Locke, who has been appointed U.S. Ambassador to China.
Bryson is a former chairman and chief executive of Edison International, a California-based energy company.
"California approved one of the broadest and most controversial components of its landmark climate change law, pushing the state toward a low-carbon economy that relies less on imported foreign oil.
The California Air Resources Board on Thursday voted to adopt final rules that will regulate carbon emissions across a broad cross section of the state's economy, including oil and gas producers, utilities and transportation companies, farmers and the building industry.
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