http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jOtM8w25kOW2q_ALGZSFubUf99sw

here in the UK we are being warned of a 40% increase in energy prices by this winter. no idea how this will/if effect others around the world but maybe time to look at ways to reduce your energy usage as much as possable now to avoid those "OMG" bills later.

Looks like there are going to be some realignments. Airlines are going to get dropped a notch. Even after this rough patch where there will be an eventual culling of the weak, sloppy, unlucky or ungraceful.

Trains look to be taking up some of the slack.

Lots of SUVs and trucks are going to be on sale, cheap. If you have a real need this might be a good time to buy.

Real estate prices have been soft. Look for them to be softer longer in bedroom communities that are more than a dozen miles away from the jobs. Properties in an near the cities could see a resurgence. Perhaps a return of downtown. Maybe even real communities.

Electric on this island has increased a lot over the last year. I'm paying about 250 KYD bucks more this year then at the same time last year. Going to be an interesting year here!

Conservation and frugality are always good ideas.

But this would be a particularly good time to closely review every penny in the budget with an eye toward determining actual vital needs from conveniences, vain desires and wants.

One of the truths overlooked is that in terms of energy use cities are by far more efficient than the suburbs and country living for any set standard of living.

I agree... but it eventually reaches a point where a customer can only do so much. When 2/3 of your bill is devoted just to fuel surcharges (and every indication of it going even higher), its scarey!

On this island, by law the electrical utility company is mandated to recieve at the minimum of 20% profit every year. Not to mention there are laws in place that residential addresses have to use the local electrical company for all electric needs. There is a recent addition to that clause where you can use solar for your hot water tank for home and your pool, but thats it.

Gotta love the caribbean!

I just happened to read this informative NY Times article about the energy crunch in China and how gov't subsidies have created some of the problems by distorting the normal workings of the market.

So, for those who think that gov't should step in do things like freeze gasoline prices, drop the gas tax, etc., China is a good example that it doesn't necessarily work as expected over the long haul, particularly when prices are changing rapidly.

I learned some new things from this article. For example, I knew that many areas in China suffer from electricity shortages but I always thought that it was simply a lag in building new generating capacity to keep up with new development. But I had no idea that some of the more recent shortages is because although producers have the power plants, they are deciding not to use their oil-fired plants because the subsidies don't let them recoup their oil costs when they sell their electricity. What a crazy situation. Well, no more crazy than the financial shenanigans and artificial electricity shortages that led to the periodic rolling blackouts here in California during the booming Enron days, I guess.

The more paranoid side of me is looking at the upcoming winter as one of those destabilizing events that shakes a country to the core, but the smug, arrogant side of me looks to the wood shed - already full with 8 cords of 2-year dry oak, hickory and some cherry and another 5 cords of red oak wood drying for winter 2009-10.

Then we look to the bills - no credit card debt at all, no car payments, the only debt bill we have is a mortgage, and that was locked from day 1 at a rate I can afford even if I make 1/4 my salary.

Then I look to our food supplies - not as smug there, but we're not just WILLING to make food from scratch materials, we're GOOD at it.

OK, feeling great....BUT....

We don't live in a town, and there's a LOT to be said for living in a town. A lot. I have this Google Spreadsheet that tells me - in DOLLARS how much it costs to drive to various locations depending on the vehicle I drive.

My commute costs are $10 in gas to the bus stop, and then $28 round-trip bus ticket - per day. I walk in NYC, except when it's REALLY rainy, then I take the subway, that adds $4 a day.
So on a rainy day commute, that's $42 a day. I go in 3 days a week, so, assuming no rainy days, that's $5,586 a year or so in commuting costs, which is eating up about $9,000 of my pre-tax income, since I pay for commuting with post-tax dollars and there's no deduction. If energy costs jump up a little more, it's safe to see that going to $7,000 a year. You need to earn about $12,000 to get home with $7,000, so the question is can I find work more local, at a similar salary, without the huge cost of travel .

When I look to the kinds of jobs in my area that match my highest paying skills sets there are exactly...none.

If I move to the city (which I'd hate to do), my commute costs would drop to almost zero, and my housing costs would rise by about $15,000 a year. At least.

So, yeah, energy costs are going to hit us all, differently.

I'm concerned that it'll be a long, cold winter. Sunspot activity has been nil since spring which results in the sun putting out less energy. Global warming has been on hold for the last ten years. Earth's "normal" state throughout it's existence leans more towards the mushy iceball than the warmth we had for the last several thousand years. I'm starting to think keeping all my winter gear wasn't such a bad idea.

-Blast