Mexico fast becoming the US's largest market for energy exports, report says

The untapped market for U.S. crude oil and natural gas isn't across the sea in Asia or Europe, but just across the border in Mexico.

More than 50 percent of Mexico's energy imports now comes from the U.S. as Mexico's national oil and gas company, Pemex, struggles to reinvest in its own production, according to a new report due out this week from S&P Global Platts that underscores the large stake Mexico has in buying fossil fuels from the United States.

The country also has to move forward with a plan that began two years ago to restructure its energy markets and make them more competitive by attracting more participants from the U.S. and other countries.

President Trump often touts America's rapid growth as an oil and gas producer and exporter. The White House last week issued a statement touting new Energy Department data that showed the U.S. is on target to become a net natural gas exporter this year, meaning it will ship more of the fuel abroad than it imports. Mexico will play a role in that.

"Pipeline imports of U.S. natural gas make up nearly 60 percent of total Mexican natural gas supply, compared to just 22 percent in 2010," according to the report's executive summary reviewed ahead of publication by the Washington Examiner. And that trend isn't about to change any time soon. "Platts Analytics expects that U.S. natural gas imports will rise to nearly 70 percent of total supply by 2022."

To meet the demand for natural gas from the U.S., Mexican pipeline import capacity has risen by 145 percent in the last seven years, according to the report. Mexican officials in the U.S. recently pointed out that the increase in natural gas use is driven partly by environmental targets that demand it switch to cleaner-burning natural gas to meet its electricity demand.

But Mexico is a bit of a novice in dealing with the complexities of operating a competitive natural gas market. It only just ramped up a new natural gas trading structure last month as part of its five-year market restructuring plan, according to S&P Global.

"Mexico's natural gas market is in a massive state of flux," according to S&P Global. "Gas trading is still in a nascent stage of development after getting off the ground in July." Natural gas purchasers are being cautious about the new system that is meant to inject more competition into the market. "Gas buyers are hesitant to leave Pemex" and be dependent on another supplier, given that "current supply/demand conditions suggest that areas of supply shortage and/or transportation constraints could experience [higher] premium prices."

Manufacturers and other industrial natural gas customers "have expressed concern about the recent lifting of natural gas price caps on first-hand sales and the possibility of price spikes in some regions," according to the report. On the generation side, the cost of electricity has increased at a healthy pace compared to the lower prices in the United States, but that's because the Mexican market has struggled to keep up with demand for the clean-burning fossil fuel.

Power prices are climbing in Mexico as the natural gas market tightens, with prices rising 56 percent in the first half of the year, the report said.

But those hiccups aren't stopping U.S. energy companies from wanting to get into the Mexican market. Take ExxonMobil, for example. It "sees Mexico as an expanding market" where demand for fossil-based fuels is projected to grow more than 40 percent over the next 25 years, according to the report. At the same time, U.S. demand is expected to fall by 17 percent. The market for gasoline and diesel will be growing in Mexico, while the U.S. market is shrinking.

Mexican imports of refined U.S. oil products such as gasoline experienced massive growth in the first quarter of 2017.

"Unable to meet growing demand with local production, Mexico is opening its refined products markets to competition," the report said. "Imports of U.S. petroleum products over the first four months of 2017 were up over 125 percent year-on-year. Mexico is in the process of expanding its refined products pipelines and terminals, and allowing outside access to existing assets."

That might be the reason why BP opened its first internationally branded retail gas station in Mexico City in May. It is the first of 1,500 new fuel stations that the oil company plans to build in the country.

In contrast to the U.S., some large oil companies like Exxon have completely exited from the gas station business altogether over the last decade.

Meanwhile, Mexico's Pemex opened its first gas station in the United States about a year and a half ago in Houston. A Pemex official at the time said the station is meant to test the company's ability to compete in the U.S. It plans to build a fleet of five stations in the Houston area.

"We want to be put to the toughest test," said José Manuel Carrera Panizzo, the company's head of business development. "In terms of historic importance, it's the first time Pemex puts a gas station outside the Mexican borders," he said. "We're trying to bring Mexico closer to American consumers ... [and] we're very excited."

Oil slides on worries about global crude glut, Wall Street slump

Oil prices fell more than 1.5 percent on Thursday, as a bruising day on Wall Street bolstered fears of slowing demand amid lingering concerns over a global oversupply of crude.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 settled down 97 cents or 1.96 percent to $48.59 a barrel. Brent crude futures LCOc1 were down 80 cents or 1.52 percent to $51.90 a barrel.

U.S. stock indexes fell sharply on Thursday, with the Dow and the Nasdaq posting triple-digit point declines, as investors fretted over escalating tensions between the U.S. and North Korea.

The falling U.S. stock market translated to weakness in the oil market, said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

"That raised concerns about demand," he said, "The demand picture gets murky as stocks go down. Gold has stayed up so that confirms my suspicions it’s a fear trade."

On the supply side, Russian oil producer Gazprom Neft (SIBN.MM) considers it "economically feasible" to resume production in mature fields after a global agreement among OPEC and non-OPEC countries expires, a representative of the company said.

And while the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries raised its outlook for oil demand in 2018 and cut its forecasts for output from rivals next year, yet another increase in the group's production suggested the market will remain in surplus despite efforts to limit supply. [nL5N1KW3S0]

OPEC said its oil output rose by 173,000 bpd in July to 32.87 million bpd, led by the exempt producers plus top exporter Saudi Arabia, citing figures it collects from secondary sources.

Crude prices are down nearly 7 percent so far this year, pressured by concern that output cuts by OPEC and its partners may not eliminate the global crude glut.

"$50 seems to be a formidable foe for the crude bulls," said Flynn.

Global crude stocks remain above their longer-term averages and with the U.S. summer driving season nearly at an end, Wednesday EIA data showed gasoline inventories rose for the first time in eight weeks.

EIA data also showed inventories in the United States are at their lowest since October, having fallen for 10 of the last 12 weeks.

While prices rose on Wednesday after the lower U.S. inventory numbers, Gene McGillian, manager of market research at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut said that information was not enough to sustain a rally.

"It seems like the market wants to go higher," he said, "The market is searching for it, the question is will it get it."

Orlando becomes 40th US city to pledge 100% renewable energy

• The Orlando City Commission this week unanimously approved a resolution to transition the city to 100% clean and renewable energy by 2050. All municipal operations will be powered by renewables by 2030.
• According to the Sierra Club, Orlando is now the largest city in Florida to make that commitment and joins more than three dozen other cities nationwide that have committed to carbon-free energy.
• In June, the U.S. Conference of Mayors approved a resolution supporting a 100% renewable energy goal by 2035, and launched the Ready for 100 campaign to support the utilization of more clean power. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer was one of those signing onto the pledge.

Dive Insight:

Home to Disney World, Universal Studios and other major tourist destinations, the city of Orlando envisions a future where all of its energy needs will be met by renewable power. 

The city council's resolution says Orlando wants to expand on its commitments, "in cooperation with other local governments, private organizations, and individuals, to achieve 100% of all electricity consumed in the City of Orlando to come from renewable energy resources and associated technologies by the year 2050."

Orlando has a history of clean energy ambitions: in 2010, the city was designated as a “Solar America City” and in 2016 it was designated as a “SolSmart City” by the U.S. Department of Energy. Also last year, Orlando enabled the Property Assessed Clean Energy and the Solar & Energy Loan Fund financing programs to assist home and business owners with clean energy upgrades.

The League of Women Voters of Orange County has been pushing for greater sustainability efforts in the region and hailed the move.

“Today, Orlando takes its place on the regional, state and national stage as a forward-thinking city committed to a healthier, sustainable future,” LWVOC Co-President Carol Davis said in a statement. “This is a first, important step, and we plan to continue to support and encourage the city to follow with concrete measures that solidify this commitment.”

There is rapidly growing interest in renewable energy being shown by municipal governments. A joint survey by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions found almost 70% of responding cities already generate or purchase some clean energy, more than 20% are considering the option, and more than 60% are buying low-emission vehicles for fleets.

US solar energy grid braces for solar eclipse event

While the continental U.S. is eagerly awaiting the solar eclipse, solar energy plants are preparing for that brief moment when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun.

On average, the solar eclipse in its totality will last around two minutes and 40 seconds, leaving eclipse-gazers in awe from Oregon to South Carolina as they witness the Sun’s corona behind the Moon. No matter the percent of visibility, the solar grid will be impacted, most heavily in western states, where a vast majority of solar plants operate.

For those 1.4 million households in the U.S. that do rely on solar energy and have a solar system installed, there will be a slight drop off in power generation.

THE 2017 SOLAR ECLIPSE MAY SHOW THE SUN IS BIGGER THAN WE THOUGHT

“As far as solar panels, we are expecting this to impact places where the grid depends on solar power. Luckily, everyone knows this is coming," said NASA scientist, Michelle Thaller. "So if you're in an area that depends on solar energy, there will be a slight drop in energy, but that's being prepared for."

The state of California produces the most solar energy in the U.S. and will be impacted the most. 4.2 gigawatts of power (1 gigawatt = 1 billion watts) will be in shortfall as the eclipse passes over California, but Michael Picker, president of the California Public Utilities Commission, said "that’s easy to make up."

Since solar energy only accounts for about 1.4 percent of all total U.S. electric generation, the overall grid has many backup options and is very robust and can bank on more conventional options like natural gas or other forms of renewables like hydro and wind.  “It’s not really a big deal. We have a lot of other kinds of clean electricity and natural gas, it doesn’t create a lot of risk to the grid,” Picker added.

Nevada will also experience a partial eclipse come August 21 with 72 percent visibility. At the Crescent Dunes solar facility outside the small town of Tonopah, 75,000 homes are powered at peak solar time. Owned and operated by a company known as Solar Reserve, Crescent Dunes is leading the way in a burgeoning American-made technology to store solar energy for situations like the solar eclipse.

HOW CAN I SEE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE?

"If you’re off grid and your only source of electricity was renewable and you had no storage, you’d have a couple minute outage," said Kevin Smith, CEO of Solar Reserve. “A couple of minute outage on solar grids as it moves across the U.S. isn’t gonna have much of an impact at all on the systems.” 

The issue of storing energy is one the industry is facing as it moves forward and technology advances. As storage techniques mature, customers with solar panels could rely on renewables even when it is cloudy and or there is no wind, according to Smith.

For the natural phenomenon of the eclipse Smith said, “Generally it’ll be like a big cloud came over the United States.”

Many states have adopted policies to encourage energy efficiency

As of July 2017, thirty states and the District of Columbia have adopted energy efficiency policies—either mandated requirements, voluntary goals, or pilot programs—designed to lower the growth of electricity consumption by using electricity more efficiently. Seven of these states have either created new or updated existing energy efficiency standards within the past year.

Since Texas became the first state with an energy efficiency resource standard (EERS) in 1999, 24 states have adopted an EERS. Four states have set voluntary goals, and two states established energy efficiency pilot programs. An EERS uses either financial incentives or non-performance penalties to encourage energy efficiency and reduce electricity sales. Typically, EERS targets increase over time.

Efficiency targets may be set as reductions from retail electricity sales in a base year or the average of prior years, as a cumulative reduction over a compliance period, or as a percent of a long-term forecasted consumption amount. An EERS may specify reductions for energy use, peak electricity demand, or both. Some newer policies include traditional customer-incentive programs such as lighting or cooling equipment rebates as well as utility-sponsored measures that make the electricity distribution system more efficient.

In many ways, EERS are similar to renewable portfolio standards (RPS), which encourage the adoption of certain renewable energy technologies. Like RPS, EERS often differ in stringency and timing across states. Six states—Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, New York, and Ohio—that initially created an EERS in 2007 or 2008 have since extended expiring targets beyond 2020. Each state’s targeted electricity savings is different, ranging from 1.0% of prior year sales (in Michigan) to 2.1% of average sales over the prior three years (in Illinois). Among these states, the final year of the standards ranges from 2020 to 2030.

In 2014, Florida, Indiana, and Ohio eliminated or suspended existing EERS policies. In August 2016, New Hampshire became the latest state to adopt an EERS, with a cumulative savings target of 3.1% of 2014 delivered electricity by 2020. In December, Ohio reinstated its EERS.

Retail electricity sales in the states that have efficiency mandates accounted for 55% of total U.S. retail electricity sales in 2016. This percentage represents the upper bound of electricity sales directly affected by EERS. In 11 states, the EERS policy covers all retail electricity sales in the state, while in others the EERS includes a subset of the state’s electricity sales; for instance, only sales by investor-owned utilities (IOUs) or a combination of IOUs, municipals, and co-ops (cooperative electric utilities).

Taking into account the electricity sales that are not directly affected, EERS-covered electricity retail sales in 2016 were close to 45% of total U.S. retail electricity sales, based on EIA sales data and information from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

Oil prices slide as market looks to producer meeting

Oil prices fell on Monday, sliding away from nine-week highs, as worries lingered over high production from OPEC and the United States.

Global benchmark Brent crude futures were down $1, or 1.9 percent, at $51.42 a barrel by 11:26 a.m. ET (1526 GMT). U.S. crude futures were down 98 cents, or 2 percent, at $48.60 per barrel.

Both contracts stood more than $1 below the levels hit last week, which marked their highest since late May, when oil producers led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries extended a deal to reduce output by 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of next March.

Doubts have since swirled around the effectiveness of the cuts, as OPEC output hit a 2017 high in July and its exports hit a record.

"The market is looking for comment from Saudi Arabia signaling OPEC will meet its agreed target," said Hans van Cleef, senior energy economist with ABN AMRO. "The possibility for (price) movement seems limited unless OPEC comes out with a statement."

Officials from a joint OPEC and non-OPEC technical committee are meeting in Abu Dhabi on Monday and Tuesday to discuss ways to boost compliance with the deal.

The OPEC concerns were more than enough to outweigh a protests at Libya's Sharara oilfield, which led to a brief shutdown starting late on Sunday. The country's National Oil Corp. said production at the 270,000 bpd field was restarting on Monday.

Meanwhile, OPEC's crude oil exports in July rose to a record high of 26.11 million bpd, most of which came from Nigeria, according to a report by Thomson Reuters Oil Research last week.

High oil output in the United States was counteracting other bullish factors, including a Baker Hughes report on Friday that showed a cut of one drilling rig in the week to Aug. 4, bringing the total count down to 765.

U.S. weekly oil production hit 9.43 million bpd in the week to July 28, the highest since August 2015 and up 12 percent from its most recent low in June last year.

Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, said, supportive news such as big drawdown in U.S. supplies would be needed to push U.S. WTI prices above $50 a barrel.

"This week, weekly data out of the U.S. should be really influential .... if (U.S. daily production) makes further gains given the high prices, I think that would be a catalyst for downside news," McCarthy said.

Still, some analysts said strong words from OPEC could help shore up prices.

"The negative price impact at the start of the week coming from OPEC and compliance focus will probably dissipate," said SEB Markets chief commodities analyst Bjarne Schieldrop.

"Saudi Arabia will restate that they will export only 6.6 million bpd (six-year low) in August and inventories will continue to draw down."

The Energy 202: The United States is running out of nuclear options

When planning began on two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle in eastern Georgia a decade ago, Southern Company's Georgia Power thought the project would be one of several to come online in a wave of new nuclear power plants opening in the United States.

But as of this week, the two still-to-be-built reactors in Georgia are alone among new nuclear projects under construction in the United States.

On Monday, a pair of utilities, private SCANA and state-owned Santee Cooper, canceled construction on a pair of nuclear reactors in South Carolina after years of mounting building costs, stagnant electricity demand and competition from natural gas and renewables.

Today, 60 percent of the carbon-neutral energy produced in the United States comes from the nation’s existing 99 nuclear power plants. The failure to complete the partially finished South Carolina reactors dims hope that nuclear power can play a greater role in further decarbonizing electricity generation in the United States -- at least anytime soon.

Many of the same economic forces that factored in the South Carolina decision weigh on the prospects of the Vogtle plant and its two planned nuclear reactors.

In March, Westinghouse, a once storied nuclear-energy business and lead contractor on both the South Carolina and Georgia reactors, went bankrupt.

In the years leading up to that filing, Westinghouse, along with nuclear energy boosters, touted its new AP1000 model reactor as the safer, cheaper and faster-to-build technology that would bring a “nuclear renaissance" to the United States, which has completed only one nuclear reactor since the 1980s.

Instead, the reverse happened. Since 2013, five nuclear power plants have retired soon after gains in a hydraulic-fracturing technology made natural gas cheap and abundant in the United States.

“In any industry, if it’s not growing it’s dying,” Rich Powell, executive director of the ClearPath Foundation, said. “If we can’t keep some construction going, our already pretty challenged nuclear renaissance will become fully challenged.”

After Westinghouse’s bankruptcy, Southern's nuclear-energy unit took over construction of the new reactors. With a larger market capitalization than SCANA, Southern appears willing to take on more risk in building the project.

Stan Wise, a commissioner on the Georgia Public Service Commission overseeing the Vogtle project, noted that the number of co-owners in the Vogtle project — Oglethorpe Power Corp., Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Dalton Utilities in addition to Southern — as well as the large electricity market in Georgia diffuse the financial risk of building the reactors.

“The dissimilarities of these projects should be recognized before making any suppositions on whether construction will continue at Plant Vogtle based on decisions made in South Carolina,” Wise said in a statement.

But the cost of the project in Georgia, like that in South Carolina, has swelled.

Back in 2009, Southern, which owns about a 46 percent stake in the project, estimated that the new Vogtle reactors would cost the company a total of $4.4 billion. Before Westinghouse’s bankruptcy, that estimated cost grew to $5.7 billion if both reactors were completed by 2020. If the completion date is pushed back another three years, to 2023, that figure could grow to $7.4 billion, according to a preliminary estimate this week from Southern.

State regulators, in consultation with the reactors' co-owners, will make a final decision about the future of the project later this year. Southern has indicated it wants to go forward.

"From a lot of scenarios, going forward with nuclear may make sense," Tom Fanning, Southern chief executive, told investors on Thursday.

Part of the reason nuclear reactors have become so expensive to build in the United States is that the nation has constructed so few recently. “We’ve allowed our nuclear construction ability to atrophy,” Powell said.

The Energy Department has stepped in to try to kick-start nuclear-energy construction. The new Vogtle reactors, for example, have the backing of the department, which lent funding to the project through its loan guarantee program.

Energy Secretary Rick Perry has spoken glowingly of nuclear energy as a part of the Trump administration’s official “all-of-the-above” energy strategy. But President Trump himself spends significantly more time talking about coal, while the White House’s proposed budget, if passed, would drastically reduce funding for the department's nuclear-energy office and eliminate the loan program altogether.

The future of nuclear energy likely lies with companies pursuing new technologies, such as small modular reactors. Unlike the Vogtle plant and its other larger cousins, modular reactors — like those being developed by a company called NuScale in rural Idaho with Energy Department support — are designed to avoid cost overruns by being built in factories.

Technology and Energy Stocks Dip as US Indexes Lose Ground

U.S. stocks are slipping Thursday as technology and energy companies fall, while a solid quarter from cereal maker Kellogg helped makers of food and household goods move higher. Investors are buying government bonds after some disappointing economic news from the U.S. and Britain. Companies that sell and distribute generic drugs took sharp losses.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 6 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,471 as of 1:40 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average added 3 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 22,020. The Dow crossed 22,000 points for the first time Wednesday after a seven-day winning streak. The Nasdaq composite lost 19 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,343. The Russell 2000 sank 5 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,408 after a sharp loss a day ago.

TECH TAKES A TURN: Security software maker Symantec announced disappointing first-quarter sales and its forecasts for the rest of the year weren't as good as analysts had hoped. Symantec also said it will sell its website security business to DigiCert for $950 million in cash and a 30 percent stake in DigiCert. Symantec slid 49 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $30.42.

3D printer maker 3D Systems plunged $3.43, or 20.1 percent, to $13.59 after it fell short of Wall Street estimates in the second quarter and cut its projections for the full year. Elsewhere, Apple lost $1.71, or 1.1 percent, to $155.41 after a big jump the day before.

THEY'RE GREAT: Kellogg, the maker of Frosted Flakes, Pop Tarts and Eggo waffles, reported another quarterly decline in sales as revenue from breakfast items slipped and snack food sales were flat. But the results weren't as bad as experts had expected. Its stock jumped $2.61, or 3.9 percent, to $70.05.

Consumer products maker Clorox also rose after it disclosed a larger-than-expected profit. It gained $4.78, or 3.6 percent, to $136.75.

GENERIC DRUG WOES: AmerisourceBergen slumped $9.05, or 9.9 percent, to $82.23 after it said it expects slower revenue growth this year. Prescription drug distributors have struggled lately as the prices of generic drugs fall, and rival Cardinal Health lost 8.2 percent Wednesday after its quarterly report.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, the largest manufacturer of generic drugs, also tumbled. It slashed its outlook as falling prices and growing competition hurt its results in the U.S. The stock dropped $7.73, or 24.7 percent, to $23.53.

ECONOMIC NEWS: The Institute for Supply Management gave a disappointing report on how U.S. services companies did in July. The group said it services index slipped to its lowest reading in 11 months as production, orders and hiring all slowed down. It's a result that suggests the economy is still growing at a steady but modest pace.

Meanwhile the Bank of England cut left its key interest rate at a record low and reduced its growth forecasts for the company. However, that sent the British FTSE 100 index 0.9 points higher for the day, as investors were glad the bank probably won't raise interest rates any time soon. The pound also moved lower.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.24 percent from 2.27 percent. That sent interest rates lower, and banks also fell.

ENERGY: Oil prices turned lower. Benchmark U.S. crude dipped 35 cents to $49.24 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 14 cents to $52.22 a barrel in London.

ELECTRIFYING: Electric car maker Tesla said it's confident it can meet its production goals for its new Model 3 sedan, which will cost less than its previous cars. The company also took a smaller net loss than investors expected. Its shares gained $21.67, or 6.6 percent, to $347.56.

AVON CALLING... FOR HELP: Avon Products took a loss in its latest quarter and said sales weren't as good as expected. The cosmetics retailer has been struggling for years to revive its business, and it said Thursday that CEO Sheri McCoy will leave the company. Activist investors have put pressure on Avon to find new leadership. The stock lost 31 cents, or 9.2 percent, to $3.05.

METALS: Gold dipped $4 to $1,274.40 an ounce. Silver fell 10 cents to $16.63 an ounce. Copper lost less than 1 cent to $2.88 a pound.

CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 110.17 yen from 110.61 yen. The euro rose to $1.1866 from $1.1860.

STOCKS OVERSEAS: In France, the CAC 40 rose 0.5 percent and the DAX in Germany lost 0.2 percent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.3 percent and the Kospi of South Korea dropped 1.7 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 0.3 percent.

Russian Hackers Infiltrated U.S. Energy Business Networks, Including Nuclear-Power Companies

U.S. government officials have concluded that Russian government hackers were indeed behind recent infiltrations of the business systems of nuclear power plants and other energy companies in the U.S., according to a Washington Post report published Saturday night. The cyber-reconnaissance breaches appear to have been limited to computer networks related to business and administrative work at less than a dozen companies, and there is no evidence that the computer systems that control those companies’ power plants were ever at risk. Regardless, the intrusions are the first to get successfully into American nuclear-power companies, and they seem to indicate a willingness on the part of Russia to target the U.S. energy system or at least to probe it for weaknesses in preparation for a future cyberattack.

The intrusions themselves had been previously reported and seem to have been underway since at least May. A warning had gone out to the U.S. energy sector from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security late last month, but the perpetrators have only recently been linked to the Kremlin. The hacking method involved spearphishing and “watering hole” techniques to gain company employees’ log-in and password data.

Energy companies have good reason to be worried about any such mischief: Russian hackers are suspected of having been behind the successful disruption of power networks in Ukraine both last December, causing a blackout in Kiev, and in December 2015, leaving 225,000 without power for up to six hours. The Russian government has previously targeted U.S. infrastructure computer systems in 2014, and last year sought to disrupt and hack the U.S. presidential election, according to intelligence officials.

The Post adds that most of America’s nuclear power plants are relatively safe from cyberattacks because the plants are completely cut off from the internet. Electric power plants are more vulnerable. The same hackers behind these recent attacks have been active throughout the world since 2015 at least, targeting energy and industrial firms in Turkey and Ireland as well, according to cybersecurity analysts.

At a meeting between President Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin at the G20 on Friday, the two leaders discussed forming some kind of shared cybersecurity unit.

Google to Power Dutch Data Center With Solar Energy

Google will purchase all the electricity generated by the largest solar park in the Netherlands over the next decade to power a recently opened data center housing thousands of servers, the U.S. internet company and energy provider Eneco said on Friday.

It is part of Google's ambition to switch its data centers and offices entirely to renewable energy this year, helped by the steep fall in prices for wind and solar energy.

The contract with Eneco, for which no financial details were disclosed, will supply renewable energy for "many months to come, maybe even years", Google's European energy manager Marc Oman said.

The agreement comes as the Netherlands makes a push to boost its renewable energy production and is investing 12 billion euros in 2017 in offshore wind farms.

The Eemshaven data center, which cost roughly 600 million euros and opened in 2016, is one of four Google operates in Europe.

Fossil fuels continue to dominate U.S. energy consumption, despite rise in wind and solar

Nearly 90 years ago, Americans began relying on natural gas more than burning wood for their energy needs. Fossil fuels have led the way ever since.

Wyoming provides a significant portion of the raw sources of energy that end up in the gas tanks of cars and in the boilers of power plants. The state provides the bulk of U.S. coal, which is burned to create electricity. It is the fourth-largest producer of natural gas and the eighth largest for crude oil, so far in 2017.

Despite the recent rise in renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, fossil fuels still account for most of the nation’s energy consumption and have done so for about a century, according to the Energy Information Administration.

The growth of renewables and changes in the power sector have affected fossil fuels’ dominance in recent years. In 2016, fossil fuels accounted for 81 percent of the energy consumed in the U.S., the lowest percentage in the past 100 years, according to the EIA.

Last year, renewables accounted for 10.5 percent of energy consumption. The last time renewable energy sources were that high was in the 1930s, when biomass energy was more common, particularly from wood-burning sources of power.

The electricity sector has played a major role in the changing energy mix, with coal consumption declining by 38 percent since 2005, according to the federal energy administration. For the last two decades, about 90 percent of coal consumption went into generating electricity. But falling natural gas prices, as well as the increase in wind and solar usage, has hurt coal’s prominence in that sector.

Natural gas consumption has risen in nine out of the last 10 years, according to the EIA.

Petroleum, still the dominant source of energy due to its role in transportation, has increased each year for the last four years. It soared ahead of other energy sources in the 1950s and has kept that lead ever since.

Energy, auto parts companies lead US stocks lower at midday

U.S. stocks are slipping Wednesday as oil prices turn lower and energy companies fall with them. Auto parts makers and car companies are skidding after O'Reilly Automotive disclosed weak sales in the second quarter. Major indexes are mixed as technology companies, health care firms and banks make small gains.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,431 as of 11:35 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 12 points, or 0.1 percent, to 21,467. The Nasdaq composite rose 25 points, or 0.4 percent, to 6,135 as technology companies did better than the rest of the market.

Small-company stocks slumped, and the Russell 2000 index sank 12 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,414. At midday, almost three-quarters of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange were falling.

U.S. markets were closed Tuesday.

SIGN ON THE DOTTED LINE: Payment processor Vantiv will buy the U.K.'s Worldpay for about $10 billion. Worldpay allows businesses to accept credit cards and online payments, and it said Tuesday it was talking to Vantiv and JPMorgan about potential deals. It released a statement Wednesday saying the companies agreed on the key terms of an acquisition. Vantiv stock retreated $1.73, or 2.8 percent, to $60.78.

Monogram Residential, which owns and operates luxury apartment communities, climbed after it agreed to be bought by real estate company Greystar and a group of investors. The deal values Monogram at $12 a share, or about $2 billion, and also includes about $1 billion in debt. Monogram stock added $2.16, or 22 percent, to $11.96.

FALSE START: Auto parts maker O'Reilly Automotive said sales at its older locations fell over the last three months because of weak demand and the effects of a mild winter. The company had expected sales to improve in the second quarter, and Wall Street analysts had forecast growth as well. O'Reilly stock lost $45.18, or 20.5 percent, to $175.23 and is down 37 percent this year as investors worry about the effects of slowing car sales.

The three biggest losers on the S&P 500 were all auto parts companies. Advance Auto Parts gave up $17.87, or 15.1 percent, to $100.54 and AutoZone slid $56.12, or 9.8 percent, to $515.59.

Car companies also fell, as Ford declined 25 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $11.31 while General Motors sagged 54 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $35.03. Automakers had rallied Monday after they reported their monthly sales.

Tesla lost $19.57, or 5.5 percent, to $333.05 as investors were disappointed with the company's second-quarter production and delivery totals.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude dropped $1.62, or 3.4 percent, to 45.45 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, sank $1.45, or 2.9 percent, to $48.16 a barrel in London. U.S. crude reached an annual low in late June and then jumped 11 percent over the previous eight trading days.

Hess fell $1.90, or 4.2 percent, to $43.52 and Exxon Mobil shed $1.29, or 1.6 percent, to $80.81.

TECH RELIEF: Technology companies did relatively well, although they have taken sharp losses over the last month. Chinese e-commerce company Baidu rose $4.18, or 2.3 percent, to $184.15 and chipmaker Nvidia gained $3.76, or 2.7 percent, to $143.09. The companies said they will work together on a group of projects intended to bring artificial intelligence technology to cloud competing, autonomous cars and home assistants.

Elsewhere, chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices jumped 62 cents, or 5.1 percent, to $12.77 and payment processor PayPal climbed $1.35, or 2.6 percent, to $54.22.

NORTH KOREAN MISSILE: Investors weren't much troubled by North Korea's first successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile. The VIX, Wall Street's "fear gauge," inched higher as the U.S. and ally South Korea responded to the test by firing precision missiles into South Korean waters, and the United Nations Security Council was set to hold an emergency meeting.

BONDS: Bond prices edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note dipped to 2.33 percent from 2.35 percent late Monday.

CURRENCIES: The dollar declined to 113.27 yen from 113.39 yen. The euro fell to $1.1333 from $1.1358.

OVERSEAS: The CAC 40 of France gained 0.3 percent and Germany's DAX rose 0.3 percent as well. The FTSE 100 index in Britain added 0.2 percent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.3 percent while the Kospi in South Korea added 0.3 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.5 percent.