Savage State of Torpor

I’ll start writing about these and why they’re relevant at a later date. For now, know that these articles are just selections from an overall trend of articles on problems related to resource constraints and overpopulation.

Via Bloomberg.com

Rationing Power

Chile may be forced to limit power use for the first time since 1999 because a drought has reduced water levels at hydroelectric reservoirs, said Sergio Zapata, an energy analyst at Santiago stock broker BanChile Corredores de Bolsa.

The drought pared electricity output at utilities already strained after neighboring Argentina decreased gas shipments starting in 2004. In northern Chile, generators designed to run on natural gas are using diesel instead, increasing the risk of machinery failures and blackouts, Zapata said.

“There can be a problem at any moment because of equipment breakdowns,” Zapata said.

Copper futures on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange may top the record of $4.04 a pound if supplies are disrupted, said Rodrigo Aravena, an economist at BanChile. The brokerage forecasts an average for 2008 of $3.50, compared with $3.23 last year.

`Buying Orgy’

Copper gained 32 percent this year to $4, making it the third-best performer behind natural gas and corn among 19 commodities in the Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index. Credit Suisse Group said April 4 copper may reach $12,000 a ton ($5.44 a pound) this year in London.

Not everyone expects higher prices.

This year’s first-quarter gain was fueled more by hedge- fund buyers than physical demand or supply shortages, Austin Brown, an analyst at Touradji Capital Management LP, said April 2. Paul Touradji, founder of the fund, said last month a raw- materials “buying orgy” had increased the risk of a collapse.