California Web site on trade falls short

Allen Baker

Petroleum News contributing writer

The California Energy Commission is touting an updated website, called Global Energy Connection, as a tool to promote international trade for California energy companies.

“The goal of the Global Energy Connection is to provide international and governmental contact information to energy businesses,” according to a press release from the agency. “The new website is designed to remove barriers for California business and broaden the State’s presence in the global energy market…”

But a review of the site so far indicates it has a long way to go to become a useful tool for industry.

One area of the site holds a list of companies in California that are offering their services to international clients.

Some familiar names appear on the list, such as Unocal and Texaco Exploration and Production, as well as Calpine, BP Solar, GE Hydro, Sempra Energy, and Solar Turbines, a subsidiary of Caterpillar. There are a few drilling service companies.

But the entries on the 124-page list are overwhelmingly heavy on alternative energy systems and consultants, most of them quite small. The agency cautions that “no attempt was made to screen companies contained in this directory according to their reputation, quality of product, services offered, or other such criteria.”

The commission promises a project financing database and a service to put buyers and sellers together sometime in the future.

There’s a tab on the home page labeled: “International Energy Project Financing: A listing of banks, institutions and government agencies involved in project financing.” But that link contains no list, only a vague description of the challenge of getting financing.

It says the website offers a two-volume handbook on international energy project financing. But there’s no link to the handbooks on that page.

The website touts programs such as its International Energy Fund, which gives out awards of up to $25,000 for “the pre-investment activities of qualified small and medium-sized companies doing business in international markets.” But the “awards” have to be repaid with interest once the companies have positive cash flow from a particular project.

The events calendar has listings for three conferences on solar, renewable and geothermal energy, plus the Vietnam Oil and Gas Expo.

If you think there might be something of interest on the website, the address is: http://www.globalenergyconnection.ca.gov/ .