OPEC says don’t blame them for runaway oil prices; a hungry insect may threaten Brazil’s biofuels industry; and Ford ponders building its popular European small cars in North America.

Oil’s Mid-Week Dance: Don’t blame OPEC for the current runaway spike in oil prices — says OPEC. Cartel president Chakib Khelil points a finger at speculators and a weak U.S. dollar, saying that OPEC has a spare production capacity of 3 million barrels per day. That’s not to say demand isn’t rising faster than supply. Prices rose $2.15 a barrel to $133.46 Wednesday as investors wait on Thursday’s assessment of inventory data by the U.S. Department of Energy. (Forbes)

Ford to retool truck plants to build cars: It won’t be cheap and it won’t be easy, but Ford wants to drag it production into the 21 century. CEO Alan Mullaly says the company is plotting how best to flip North American factories now producing big, unsalable trucks to build the smaller vehicles Ford sells successfully in Europe. The ambitious plan won’t be announced until next month, but will likely involve dumping behemoths such as the F-150 and E-Series van for a slimmed-down line of world cars. If Mullaly can make it happen, it will amount to the biggest product realignment in Ford history. (Detroit News)

Brazilian Biofuel Threatened By Insect Pest: As if there isn’t enough to worry about. Brazilian etymologists are trying to assess the threat posed by a recent outbreak of the Giant Cane Borer. The destructive insect has long been common to northeast Brazil, but has begin showing up in Sao Paolo, as well. Scientists are trying to determine what impact it might have on Brazil’s cane plantations, which form the basis of its surging biofuel industry. (Treehugger)

GM joins California EPA campaign to reduce motor oil consumption: We read a lot about conserving gasoline, but engine oil is a valuable commodity, too. General Motors announced this week that it will team with California’s EPA to develop ways to stretch the life of motor oil. Likely to be key: GM’s new Oil Life System, which continuously monitors the performance of engine oil. Extending service intervals to 6 thousand miles would save 8 million gallons of oil per year among California drivers. (Autoblog Green)

Britain should not build Severn Barrage says report: There’s yet more disarray in the UK’s renewable energy program. A study group says plans to build a 15 billion pound ($29 billion USD) tidal power array along the Severn estuary should be scrapped. The report says the money would be better spent on proven — and more affordable — green technologies, such as wind, solar, and hydroelectric power. (Reuters)