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There’s pressure to improve the approval process for liquefied natural gas, or LNG, exports. The Department of Energy, or DOE, recently proposed an overhaul to its process while the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to cut approval times. All this could help companies like Cheniere Energy and Kinder Morgan Inc  which have applications backed up in the DOE’s queue.

Read more at:  http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/07/03/more-good-news-for-these-potential-lng-exporters.aspx

VENTURES AFRICA- Indian energy management and innovative solutions company, ACME said a leading telecom player and tower company in Africa has awarded it a contract to install the continent’s first Li-Ion based energy storage solutions (ESS).

The contract marks ACME’s first foray into Africa. It will be carried out under a strategic agreement it had with a Korean energy storage system giant to produce and sell lithium ion batteries in telecom, solar power, defence sectors and other allied industries.

Read more at:  http://www.ventures-africa.com/2014/07/indias-acme-to-install-africas-first-li-lon-based-energy-storage-solution/

A consortium of Indian state-run metal and mining companies, International Coal Ventures Limited (ICVL), is planning a bid for Rio Tinto’s three coal mines in Mozambique.After holding preliminary talks with Rio Tinto officials, ICVL is likely to submit a bid worth $200 million within a couple of weeks for buying its stake.

– See more at: http://www.indiaincorporated.com/news-in-brief/item/3579-india-consortium-eyes-rio-tinto.html#sthash.GmpBPxjU.dpuf

The U.S. Department of Energy is stumbling in its obligation to build an advanced nuclear reactor, putting the country at risk of falling behind China, Russia and other nations in developing this vital low-carbon power technology, the government’s fiscal watchdog warned this week.

Read more at:  http://fortune.com/2014/06/27/government-watchdog-u-s-slipping-in-nuclear-energy-innovation/

(Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday approved legislation that would set a deadline for Energy Department reviews of liquefied natural gas export applications, a move aimed at securing swifter approvals for shipping gas overseas.

Read more at:  http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/25/usa-lng-exports-idUSL2N0P623020140625

Oak Ridge National Laboratory will be home to two Energy Frontier Research Centers announced this week by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. The Department of Energy awarded a total of $100 million to 32 EFRC projects to accelerate the scientific breakthroughs needed to build the 21st-century energy economy.

“Today, we are mobilizing some of our most talented scientists to join forces and pursue the discoveries and breakthroughs that will lay the foundation for our nation’s energy future,” Secretary Moniz said. “The funding we’re announcing today will help fuel scientific and technological innovation.”

Read more at:  http://oakridgetoday.com/2014/06/20/ornl-awarded-two-energy-frontier-research-centers/

France on Friday backed General Electric’s $17 billion offer for Alstom’s power and grid businesses and said its government would take a 20% stake in the French engineering giant.

French Economy Minister Arnaud Montebourg made the announcement after the country’s top officials met with executives of GE and rival Alstom corporate suitors Siemens and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Read more at: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/06/20/alstom-corporate-wooing/11045655/

Investigators of the University of Toronto have come up with the design of an economical nanoparticle technology, claimed to replace big and bulky solar cells that are now readily being used for energy production by the environment conscious. The research work regarding the new technology was published in the journal Nature Materials.

Read more at: http://www.thewestsidestory.net/2014/06/11/12600/nanoparticle-tech-offer-economical-flexible-energy-solutions/

The Indonesian government has again suggested it could tighten controls of coal exports with rules potentially introduced as early as next month.

“We expect the coal export regulation together with an amendment of the tin export regulation to be issued in early July, before the presidential election,” Thamrin Latuconsina, export director for mining and industrial products at the Trade Ministry said.

Read more at: http://www.worldcoal.com/news/ports-and-terminals/articles/Indonesia_could_introduce_coal_export_cap_by_July_coal951.aspx#.U5ZMKOkU_mQ

General Electric is sweetening the deal for the power assets of Alstom. GE chief Jeff Immelt met with French President Francois Hollande and promised to create 1,000 new jobs in France within three years as part of the takeover. The French president’s office had been criticizing this deal valued at $16.9B USD up until the meeting. Right now in France, more than 3.3 million people, or more than 10% of the workforce, are unemployed, and Hollande has been under pressure to preserve local jobs. Earlier this month, the French government gave itself veto power on transactions and the intent is to prevent deals, especially foreign deals, that take away French jobs. The new proposal from GE will protect jobs in the country’s industrial space.

Source:  https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/video/ges-immelt-meets-president-hollande-184118077.html