Inflation is here. We examine the sectors that have done well and poorly in prior inflationary environments. Read More
It's hard to imagine anyone better suited to covering the energy-investment waterfront than Robert Rapier.
Robert is no armchair analyst—he has two decades of in-the-trenches experience in a wide range of fossil fuel and biofuel technologies, including refining, natural gas production, gas-to-liquids, ethanol production and butanol production.
During a six-year stretch at ConocoPhillips, Robert ran a team of engineers in Scotland working on oil and gas projects in the North Sea.
For two years, Robert was an efficiency expert in a Texas petrochemical plant. The process changes he implemented saved the facility $9 million a year. He later worked as the Engineering Director for a Dutch environmental-technology company and provided engineering support for a Chinese facility the company was constructing.
Robert was also a butanol engineer in Germany for the Celanese Corporation, where he designed a novel butanol unit that cut production costs by $5 million per year.
In all, Robert has spent more than a dozen years working on liquid fuels technologies. Along the way he's picked up five patents, including one for a breakthrough way to convert ethane into ethylene (U.S. Patent 7,074,977).
Now, in addition to guiding readers to timely investments in Utility Forecaster and Rapier's Income Accelerator, Robert travels the world evaluating startup energy companies for deep-pocketed investors. After grilling management and assessing the technology on-site, he makes a go/no-go investment decision. His wealthy private investors and hedge fund backers trust him to make the right choice for the same reason we do: his vast real-world experience in just about every facet of the energy industry. If Robert votes thumbs-up, millions of dollars flow into these cutting-edge outfits.
Robert earned his master of science in chemical engineering and a bachelor of science in chemistry and mathematics (double major) at Texas A&M University. He tells us he was "this close" to finishing his Ph.D. before he decided he was having a lot more fun making money in energy stocks.
A prolific writer, Robert's articles have appeared in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor -- and he has been a featured expert on 60 Minutes and The History Channel. His new book, Power Plays: Energy Options in the Age of Peak Oil (Apress, 2012), helps investors sort through doom and gloom, hype and misinformation to understand the true costs, benefits and trade-offs for each of our major energy options.
In what little spare time he has left, Robert consults for a number of energy projects, including biodiesel, ethanol, butanol and biomass gasification facilities.
Analyst Articles
Stocks continue to shatter new record highs, and yet there’s no pleasing naysayers. Here’s why the rally still has legs. Read More
The meme stock phenomenon is no longer a spontaneous movement driven by a plucky gang of upstart investors. Read More
Electrification to reduce carbon emissions is an unstoppable and highly profitable trend. The stakes are high for electric utility investors. Read More
Today's truckers are monitored every mile of the way, translating into significant growth for the number one provider of fuel-payment systems. Read More
The Fed finally made it official and announced the start of its much-expected tapering of asset purchases. Wall Street is reacting positively. Read More
The off-year elections last Tuesday brought important decisions for marijuana and psychedelics reform. Here’s what investors should know. Read More
When a company announces earnings, you should dig deeper and scrutinize management's earnings call with analysts and investors. Read More
At the conclusion of the Federal Reserve’s FOMC meeting this week, will the resulting monetary policy changes undermine the stock rally? Read More
The world will consume incredible amounts of energy and materials in the years ahead. It needs to use resources more efficiently. Read More