Hi Mark,

I wrote a little bit about them in MLP Investing Insider last month. I think they look OK, and they will probably be fine as their financials improve (and they are improving). But take away the IPO aspect and there aren’t many reasons to favor them over many of their competitors with better financials.

Igor answered this during the recent monthly investor web chat. In case you didn’t see his answer:

It’s a little baffling frankly, because earnings were in line with expectations and the weakness in Europe was well known long ago. It’s a pick that hasn’t worked out as hoped but there’s real value in the business and I wouldn’t sell here. But it might be a little too early to buying the dip. — Igor

The thing about the Chinese companies is that they are everywhere there is oil — including in countries where the US won’t conduct business. So that might be an item to take into consideration when you are deciding whether to invest. I don’t have a good enough feel for Chinese politics or their tax structures to know whether that’s a plus or minus with these companies, but I don’t believe they have the expertise (yet) of an Exxonmobil or Chevron to carry out some of the more challenging projects. If you are looking for exposure to China, then you could do a lot worse. If you are just looking for very good oil company investments, I personally would have more concerns than if I invested in a US, Canadian, or European producer.

Sorry for the tardy response, as I am traveling out of the country. I took a look at BBEP in response to a question at MLP Investing Insider on Memorial Production Partners (Nasdaq: MEMP). I said that I thought BBEP was a more economical alternative. Still looks fairly undervalued to me relative to its peers.

A year ago I nearly bought shares of CLNE, but bought WPRT instead. I love the space, but I developed doubts over WPRT’s ability to execute. So I recently sold my position in favor of a natural gas producer, which I think is more of a sure thing. CLNE has great potential, and you could be richly rewarded if you are patient. But you need to have very high risk tolerance, as you could see 20 percent shaved off the value over the course of a few days. That risk is too great for me, so I have avoided CLNE. Once we see steadily increasing revenues and a move toward profitability, I may be a buyer.

Sure it’s bearish at the margin but not by much, I think, first because we’re so far away from a meaningful recovery in Iranian crude exports and second because to the degree that odds of that eventual recovery have increased they’ll pressure first the higher global Brent price, which still sits $17 above the West Texas Intermediate. And WTI is still above $93 today.

Mark, I have been bearish on coal stocks for a couple of years. After the bloodbath, it probably does have a decent upside at this point, but it’s going to be fighting headwinds well into the future. I would rather own something that isn’t going to be fighting through those headwinds, but I understand that it looks pretty cheap at this point.