Biotechnology was first applied in medicine, then farming. Today, dozens of lifesaving drugs are on the market, while many crops are genetically engineered to withstand weed killers.

Now, a 2-year-old push to develop alternative fuels is driving biotechnology's growth into the industrial sector.

Thousands of corporate executives and scientists gather this weekend in Orlando, Fla. for an industry trade show specifically aimed at touting biotechnology's so-called third wave, industrial applications. The word on everyone's lips: ethanol.

After decades of unfulfilled promise and billions in government corn subsidies, energy companies may finally be able to produce ethanol easily and inexpensively thanks to breakthroughs in biotechnology.

Most of the 5 billion gallons of ethanol produced annually in the United States is still made by fermenting corn, but the crop is expensive and its use in biofuels cuts into the nation's food supply. So the Canadian biotech company Iogen Corp. has developed a method for deriving ethanol from a variety of plants including wheat, oats and barley. Others are genetically engineering microbes to produce enzymes that will convert the cellulose in crop waste, wood chips and other plants into ethanol.

President Bush helped breathe new life into this once-sleepy biotech sector by touting the need to ramp up production of this "cellulosic ethanol" in his last two State of the Union speeches.

The president wants to reduce the country's oil consumption by 20 percent within 10 years and he sees alternative fuels as the way to get there. Bush visited the North Carolina biotechnology company Novozymes Inc. last month to underscore the industry's vital role in accomplishing that ambitious goal.

Government agencies led by the Department of Energy are sinking millions into biotech projects aimed at making ethanol more efficiently. And startups dedicated to turning plants into fuel have captured the fancy of deep-pocketed venture capitalists like Vinod Khosla. The billionaire co-founder of Sun Microsystems Inc. is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in green technology and will be a featured speaker this year at the World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology & Bioprocessing.

Other heavy hitters attending the conference include University of California scientist Jay Keasling, Discover magazine's Scientist of the Year in 2006 and a leader in the burgeoning "synthetic biology" field, which aims to create living species that will spit out drugs and fuel.

Oil companies are also investing heavily in biotechnology these days, and executives from ConocoPhillips Co., Chevron Corp. and Shell Oil Corp. will also be on hand at Walt Disney World for the conference, which starts Thursday.

By contrast, these annual gatherings have historically been sleepy affairs. Last year's industrial biotech meeting, sponsored by the Biotechnology Industry Organization, drew little interest even though it was held in Hawaii in January. That state's lieutenant governor may have been the biggest draw.

Past conferences have featured discussions on topics like biotech's role in manufacturing enzymes used to help laundry detergent break down dirt and give blue jeans the stone-washed look. But this year's meeting will be focused on the industry's role in making ethanol and other alternative fuels.

The DOE has awarded up to $385 million over four years to six companies to develop ethanol.

"We are moving into a very diversified fuel era," said Ron Pernick, who co-founded Portland, Ore.-based Clean Edge, which tracks venture capital investment. "Private investment is really taking off."

Pernick said venture capital investment in biofuels has increased from less than $1 million in 2004 to $20.5 million in 2005 to $813 million last year. Much of that investment is flowing to biotechnology companies that genetically engineer microbes that produce enzymes needed to break down crops into alcohol.

At least one industrial biotechnology company has radically remade itself into an energy company in hopes the alternative fuel craze is here to stay.

San Diego's Diversa Corp., which has lost $329.5 million since its inception in 1994, bought the Cambridge, Mass.-based ethanol company Celunol in January for $154.7 million in stock, plus debt financing. The Celunol management team will take over the new energy company once the deal is approved.

Still, even industrial biotechnology's adherents concede that commercial success in the alternative energy industry is years away if ever.

"Taking any invention from the lab to the marketplace is a long-term process and takes a lot of patience," said Celunol spokesman John Howe, who said the company's plan to convert sugar cane into ethanol will take many years to become profitable.

Others wonder if trend to making more ethanol has created a bubble that may soon burst.

Economist Lester Brown, who launched the Washington-based think tank Earth Policy Institute, said it's easier to make automobiles more fuel efficient than it is to radically alter the country's fuel supply.

"If we were to raise fuel efficiency standards, we could save as much oil as the president wants," Brown said. "Ethanol is not a winning ticket."

source news : truthabouttrade.org

Black Dragon Resources, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: BDGR) announced today that six of the seven newly drilled wells have been turned on. Four of those six wells are pumping mainly oil, already producing 100 Bls a day.

Management stated that the two wells pumping water were shot in the C zone, while the other four wells were shot in the B. Black Dragon will close off the C zone and reshoot the three wells this week.

Three new wells are currently producing approximately 100 Bls a day. Also the second water well has been completed, and Black Dragon is awaiting approval to start injection. The drilling rig has been moved to the next location, and the Company hopes to have the B water well drilled and completed by month's end.

Updating the original goal of completion of the 30 oil wells in March:

-- Goodwin B 13 wells on pump
-- Davies 1 well back on pump
-- Fuller 5 wells back on pump (not counting the newly drilled wells)
-- Burke 8 wells back on pump
-- Robinson 8 wells back on pump


So far in the month of March, 35 new wells have been completed, while additional existing wells have been put back on pump, which means that Black Dragon will surpass its goal.

Another goal was getting Hainesville back on. The new pump will be installed on Wednesday, the 28th of March. The crew will be sandpumping the two water wells, and at least part of Hainesville should be turned back on.

Also, Johnson pump is back on, and the Company is still in negotiations to drill five new gas wells.

The final item is that Black Dragon has contracted another crew to get the jack moved to the Rislen well in order to start testing the deep oil and gas well.

With the existing wells coming back on, Black Dragon estimates that previous output will increase by another 26.29 BLS a day, and factoring in the additional 100 Bls a day from newly drilled wells, revenues are expected to increase significantly.

About Black Dragon:

Black Dragon Resource Companies, Inc. is an oil and gas Production Company focused on the acquisition of mature, producing and existing U.S. oil and gas fields. The Company's focus on mature, domestic oil fields eliminates exploration risk, reducing costs, and provides immediate generation of income in a niche market where larger independent and major oil companies are not positioned to compete.

The statements in this press release regarding any implied or perceived benefits from existing oil and gas field properties, actual reserves and revenues to be derived from the reserves, plans to drill additional oil and gas wells, anticipated revenues, the acquisition of additional oil or gas leases, maintaining mineral lease rights, and any other such effect resulting from any of the above are forward-looking statements. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the continued production of gas at historical rates, costs of operations, delays, and any other difficulties related to producing minerals such as oil and gas, continued maintenance of the oil field and properties, price of oil or gas, marketing and sales of produced minerals, risks and effects of legal and administrative proceedings and governmental regulation, future financial and operational results, competition, general economic conditions, and the ability to manage continued growth.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and the federal securities laws. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions at the time made, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Forward- looking statements are inherently subject to unpredictable and unanticipated risks, trends and uncertainties such as the Company's inability to accurately forecast its operating results; the Company's potential inability to achieve profitability or generate positive cash flow; the availability of financing; and other risks associated with the Company's business. The Company assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events.


Contact:
UpTick.com
480-240-1700


SOURCE: Black Dragon Resource Companies, Inc.

Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA said on Monday its $5 billion debt issue would be priced at a premium of 105.5 percent.

The issue offers a combination of three bonds with different maturities to be bought in a single package.

PDVSA said the coupon for the tranche of 10-year-debt was 5.25 percent. It was 5.375 percent for the 20-year bonds and 5.5 percent for the 30-year issue.

The Eurobond issue is made up of $1 billion in 30-year-bonds and $2 billion in both 20 and 10 year paper.

Investors buy the dollar-denominated debt in Venezuelan bolivars but the interest and final capital repayment are in dollars.

The issue is designed to pump funds into the OPEC nation's oil industry and soak up liquidity, which is spurring inflation to the highest level in the Americas.

Venezuelan bond issues are normally heavily oversubscribed.



© Reuters 2007. All rights reserved.

Cygam Energy Inc. is pleased to announce that a contract was signed with Hydro Drilling International S.p.A. (Hydro Drilling) on March 23, 2007 to drill a 1000 meters well in the Posta Nuova permit in southern Italy.

Regulatory approval for all drilling operations has been received and construction of the surface lease has commenced. Cygam has already acquired long delivery items such as wellhead, casing and related equipment. Drilling is expected to start towards the end of April, after Hydro Drilling completes its contract obligations with another operator and mobilizes the drilling rig from a nearby location.

Cygam has a 100% working interest in the Posta Nuova permit located onshore, in the Puglia region of southern Italy, along a trend of major onshore gas fields (Candela-Palino, Monte Stillo, San Salvo-Cupello, etc.). The Corporation acquired and re-interpreted available 2-D seismic data in order to confirm the size of the structural target where a former operator drilled a well in 1993. That well, Cervaro 1, tested gas at a rate of 1.3 MMcf/d from a middle Pliocene sand at a depth of approximately 950 metres but was abandoned because of lack of gas transmission infrastructure at the time. Cygam plans to drill the new well in a structurally higher position, approximately 200 meters away from the Cervaro 1 location, to a minimum total vertical depth of 1,000 metres, to test the primary middle Pliocene sandstones target. Additional shallower sandstone reservoirs will be tested as well, pending log evaluation.

This News Release includes certain "forward-looking statements". All statements other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding interpretation of seismic data, future plans and objectives of Cygam Energy Inc., are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated or expected in such statements. In particular, various factors can cause delays or prevent the Corporation from carrying out drilling plans, including but not limited to unavailability of equipment and manpower or delays in the drilling rig reaching the Posta Nuova permit. There is no certainty that the Posta Nuova drilling program will be carried out when scheduled. The existence of discoveries in structures and formations in the regions where Cygam is drilling, and the previous testing of gas flows in the same structure, does not necessarily assure that the company will be successful with its drilling program. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Cygam's expectations are risks detailed herein and from time to time in the continuous disclosure filings made by Cygam with securities regulators on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release


Contact:

Dario Sodero
Cygam Energy Inc.
President
(403) 802-6983
Email: dario.sodero@cygamenergyinc.com

Ali Rawji
Cygam Energy Inc.
Chief Financial Officer
(403) 802-6983
(403) 802-6984 (FAX)
Email: ali.rawji@cygamenergyinc.com

Source: Cygam Energy Inc.

Normabec Mining Resources Limited "NORMABEC" (TSX:NMB - News) is pleased to announce the first set of results from the 2007 drilling program from its Pitt Gold property located along the Porcupine-Destor Break, some 35 km north of Rouyn-Noranda, Abitibi. Two diamond drill rigs are presently working on the property.

Partial results from the first four holes demonstrate that gold is widespread in the sector drilled indicating a strong mineralizing system. With large volume of new data pouring in, Normabec continues to re-assess its interpretation of the mineralization model. As drilling progresses, it becomes increasingly obvious that the complexity of the mineralized structures will require 3D modelling to properly interpret the geometry of the gold bearing system.

Holes PG2006-01a and PG2006-01b are wedges out of hole PG2006-01 drilled last year and completed this year. Holes PG2007-01 and PG2007-02 are located approximately 110 metres to the east and up dip of PG2006-01. The table below shows all results around 3 g/t Au and over received so far.

complete this report click here

Fortress Minerals Corp. ("Fortress" or "the Company") is pleased to announce that an 11,000 metre drilling program has commenced at the Svetloye Gold Project in the Russian Far East. Plans are to begin the 2007 drilling program utilizing two diamond drill rigs and then add two more diamond drills in late spring.

Drilling will concentrate initially on extending the Elena mineralized zone to the northeast beyond drilling completed in 2006 as well as continue drilling at the Tamara target. Once the additional rigs are mobilized to site, drilling will begin on the additional five target areas within the Svetloye property. Mobilization of fuel and supplies to support the aggressive 2007 drilling program continues with more than 500 tons of fuel and 100 tons of supplies delivered to site thus far.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Ron F. Hochstein, President

This news release contains forward-looking statements concerning the Company's plans for its properties. These forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to political risks involving the Company's exploration and development of its properties, the inherent uncertainty of cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, commodity price fluctuations, the inability or failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in the Company's periodic filings with the British Columbia Securities Commission. Such information contained herein represents management's best judgment as of the date hereof based on information currently available. The Company does not intend to update this information and disclaims any legal liability to the contrary.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.


Contact:

Sophia Shane
Fortress Minerals Corp.
Corporate Development
(604) 689-7842
Website: www.fortressminerals.com

Source: Fortress Minerals Corp.

South Texas Oil Company plans to significantly increase its production capacity through the acquisition of a drilling rig and a workover rig to be used at its Texas properties.

According to Murray Conradie, South Texas Oil Company’s President, "The addition of these rigs will provide significant cost savings over the next several months while simultaneously allowing us to undertake comprehensive drilling and well maintenance programs. We currently operate and own working interests in approximately 570 bopd and 1,220,000 cubic feet of gas per day and anticipate a significant increase in production resulting from the utilization of these rigs," added Mr. Conradie.

"Acquiring these rigs with experienced crews to operate them represents a very significant advance for the Company and its shareholders, particularly during this prevailing period of widespread rig shortages and escalating costs,” said Mr. Conradie.

“Furthermore, the results of the first well in the new find acquired by the company and which has the potential for over 100 additional wells, have been very positive. The well has flowed approximately 5,000 BBLs over the past 30 days with a further pay zone identified behind the pipe which we feel will produce similar or greater production rates,” concluded Mr. Conradie.

source news : oilonline.com