New cybersecurity order issued for US pipeline operators July 20, 2021 The Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday announced new requirements for U.S. pipeline operators to bolster cybersecurity following a May ransomware attack that disrupted gas delivery across the East Coast. Read more
TransAlta completes 2nd of 3 planned Alberta plant conversions to natural gas
TransAlta completes 2nd of 3 planned Alberta plant conversions to natural gas July 19, 2021 TransAlta Corp. has taken another step in its goal of becoming carbon neutral by converting the second of three planned coal-to-gas conversions at its Alberta Thermal power generation facilities near Wabamun. Read more
Duke Energy, hedge fund continue battle
Duke Energy, hedge fund continue battle July 19, 2021 Duke Energy and a hedge fund continued a public battle Monday about the financial performance of the utility, including the operations of Duke Energy Florida. The West Palm Beach-based Elliott Investment Management L.P. sent an 11-page letter to the Duke Board…
Oil industry mergers and acquisitions bounce back in the second quarter of 2021
Oil industry mergers and acquisitions bounce back in the second quarter of 2021 Energize Weekly, July 21, 2021 Mergers and acquisitions among oil and gas producers rebounded in the second quarter of 2021 with more than 40 deals totaling $33 billion, with seven deals each worth more than $1 billion,…
Baker Hughes Tallies More Drilling Rigs
Baker Hughes Tallies More Drilling Rigs July 10, 2021 The overall U.S. rotary rig count increased by four to 479 drilling units this week, Baker Hughes Co. (NYSE: BKR) reported Friday. Read more
Energy company wants $15 billion from the Biden administration for blocking the Keystone XL pipeline
Energy company wants $15 billion from the Biden administration for blocking the Keystone XL pipeline July 4, 2021 TC Energy Corporation, the company that developed the Keystone XL pipeline project, is seeking to recover more than $15 billion in damages from the United States, claiming the US government breached its…
More than half the U.S. faces electricity supply problems in the face of a long, hot summer
More than half the U.S. faces electricity supply problems in the face of a long, hot summer Energize Weekly, July 7, 2021 More than half the U.S. – primarily in the West, Texas, Midwest and to a lesser extent, New England – is at risk of energy emergencies this summer,…
Supreme Court won’t sidetrack plans for PennEast pipeline
Supreme Court won’t sidetrack plans for PennEast pipeline JUN 29, 2021 The Supreme Court sided Tuesday with a pipeline company in a dispute with New Jersey over land the company needs for a natural gas pipeline, portions of which would cut through nearly a dozen municipalities in Northampton County. Read…
Texas power grid overcomes problems to meet record June demand
Texas power grid overcomes problems to meet record June demand June 25, 2021 Peak electricity demand in Texas broke June’s record on Thursday and was expected to do so again on Friday, the power grid operator said, but there was no repeat of last week’s problems when a significant amount…
Lawmakers introduce American Cybersecurity Literacy Act
Lawmakers introduce American Cybersecurity Literacy Act June 28, 2021 Bipartisan House lawmakers introduced legislation to increase cybersecurity literacy and security awareness among the American public amid a spike in cybersecurity threats against critical infrastructure. Read more
IOUs cut carbon emissions in 2020, though the footprint remains big for some
IOUs cut carbon emissions in 2020, though the footprint remains big for some Energize Weekly, June 30, 2021 Coal-fired generation and carbon emissions are down among the largest investor-owned utilities, but even with sharp drops in emissions, the carbon footprint for some companies remains large, according to survey data from…
State, Local Governments Highlight Cybersecurity Funding Needs
State, Local Governments Highlight Cybersecurity Funding Needs June 18, 2021 State, local and county governments officials testified that they need continually renewed, flexible funding to fend off increasing cyber threats during a U.S. Senate hearing. Read more
Houston Oil Benchmark Responds to 2020 ‘Wake-Up Call’
Houston Oil Benchmark Responds to 2020 ‘Wake-Up Call’ June 22, 2021 Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P (NYSE: MMP) and Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE: EPD) on Monday unveiled a new futures contract for the physical delivery of crude oil in the Houston area. Read more
Utility regulators consider FPL request for biggest rate increase in state history
Utility regulators consider FPL request for biggest rate increase in state history JUN. 21, 2021 The Florida Public Service Commission on Monday convened the first of several public hearings regarding a $2 billion rate increase request by Florida Power & Light, the state’s largest utility company. Read more
Activists Demand Biden Kill More Pipeline Projects
Activists Demand Biden Kill More Pipeline Projects June 14, 2021 Environmentalists emboldened by this week’s defeat of Keystone XL are pressuring President Joe Biden to revoke permits for other oil and gas pipelines, warning their votes depend on the administration blocking fossil fuel infrastructure. Read more
Texas grid operator urges electricity conservation as many power generators are unexpectedly offline and temperatures rise
Texas grid operator urges electricity conservation as many power generators are unexpectedly offline and temperatures rise JUNE 14, 2021 The Electric Reliability Council of Texas says a large number of power plants are offline, but it could not provide details as to what may be causing the “very concerning” number…
U.S. shale oil companies keeping production and budgets tight 2021 and beyond
U.S. shale oil companies keeping production and budgets tight 2021 and beyond Energize Weekly, June 9, 2021 U.S. shale drillers are continuing to limit production and spending with the return to pre-pandemic levels years off, according to Oslo-based energy analyst Rystad Energy. Oil output is projected to drop 5.2 percent, about…
Biden to Suspend Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Drilling
Biden to Suspend Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Drilling JUNE 1, 2021 The pendulum has swung again in the decades-long battle over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Biden administration is moving to suspend oil-and-gas leases in the sensitive Alaskan habitat, blocking a last minute rush by the Trump administration to…
Colonial Pipeline Ransomware Attack Prompts DHS to Issue New Cybersecurity Regulations
Colonial Pipeline Ransomware Attack Prompts DHS to Issue New Cybersecurity Regulations JUNE 1, 2021 Hot on the heels of an executive order aimed at standardizing federal response to cyber attacks and creating new reporting requirements for government vendors, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is establishing its own requirements specifically…
Oil and gas market rebound underpinned by market discipline at home and abroad
Oil and gas market rebound underpinned by market discipline at home and abroad Energize Weekly, May 26, 2021 Oil and natural gas have seen a rebound in 2021 but those gains are delicately balanced on market discipline in both global and domestic markets, according to an assessment by industry analyst…
U.S. shale oil output to climb for first time in 3 months in June – EIA
U.S. shale oil output to climb for first time in 3 months in June – EIA May 18, 2021 The biggest increase is set to come from the Permian, the top producing basin in the country, where output is expected to rise by 54,000 bpd to about 4.59 million bpd,…
Green push presents cybersecurity problems of its own
Green push presents cybersecurity problems of its own May 17, 2021 The shift to cleaner energy forebodes greater cybersecurity challenges as the economy adds new technologies and relies increasingly on electricity to fuel vehicles and heat homes. Read more
Rising natural gas prices boost coal production and summer coal-fired generation
Rising natural gas prices boost coal production and summer coal-fired generation Energize Weekly, May 19, 2021 A steady rise in natural gas prices since the start of 2021 has given the U.S. coal industry a boost as electric utilities, the nation’s prime coal consumer, are set to switch to coal-fired…
Biden prepared to take additional steps after Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack
Biden prepared to take additional steps after Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack MAY 10, 2021 President Joe Biden said Monday that his administration was prepared to take additional steps as the energy sector grapples with a colossal cyberattack targeting one of the largest fuel pipelines in the nation. Read more
New strategy for greener TVA will close coal plants, add solar and nuclear
New strategy for greener TVA will close coal plants, add solar and nuclear Thu, May 6, 2021 Nearly a century after the Tennessee Valley Authority was created to harness the power of the Tennessee River, America’s biggest public utility is planning to turn more to the sun, splitting atoms and…
Duke Energy commits to helping struggling Floridians save money, avoid disconnections
Duke Energy commits to helping struggling Floridians save money, avoid disconnections May 11, 2021 Duke Energy announced a series of steps it is taking to ensure customers who are behind on their utility bills don’t have their power cut off at a dangerous time. Read more
Black Hills Energy joins ONE Future Coalition, commits to reduce methane emissions
Black Hills Energy joins ONE Future Coalition, commits to reduce methane emissions May 03, 2021 by Chris Galford Black Hills Corp., operating utilities as Black Hills Energy, became the latest natural gas company to join the Our Nation’s Energy Future (ONE Future) Coalition last week, committing to reducing methane emissions throughout…
New York advisory panel recommendations to include gas-fired plant moratorium
New York advisory panel recommendations to include gas-fired plant moratorium 03 May 2021 New York’s Power Generation Advisory Panel will recommend a moratorium against new fossil fuel-fired plant construction to the state’s Climate Action Council, the panel’s chair said May 3. Read more
CenterPoint to sell Arkansas, Oklahoma gas utilities for $2.15 bln
CenterPoint to sell Arkansas, Oklahoma gas utilities for $2.15 bln April 29, 2021 U.S. electricity provider CenterPoint Energy Inc (CNP.N) said on Thursday it has agreed to sell its natural gas utility businesses in Arkansas and Oklahoma to privately-held Summit Utilities for $2.15 billion in cash. Read more
Duke vs. Duke: Electric and gas utilities at odds over efficiency rebates in N.C.
Duke vs. Duke: Electric and gas utilities at odds over efficiency rebates in N.C. by Elizabeth Ouzts; Elizabeth OuztsApril 27, 2021 Duke Energy’s effort to expand a popular energy-efficiency program to its entire North Carolina service area is drawing stiff opposition from a surprising quarter: Duke Energy. Read more
Global energy demand is forecast to rebound in 2021, IEA says
Global energy demand is forecast to rebound in 2021, IEA says Energize Weekly, April 28, 2021 Global energy production and demand is set to rebound from their pandemic doldrums in 2021with energy consumption up 4.6 percent, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The agency said in its annual Global…
Oil Trader Sees Crude in $70 to $75 Range
Oil Trader Sees Crude in $70 to $75 Range by Bloomberg | Andy Hoffman | Tuesday, April 20, 2021 The head of Vitol Group, the world’s biggest independent oil trader, expects crude demand to come roaring back this year and next as the world emerges from the pandemic. Read more
Cost of winterizing Texas electricity grid worth the expense, Dallas Federal Reserve says
Cost of winterizing Texas electricity grid worth the expense, Dallas Federal Reserve says Energize Weekly, April 21, 2021 The cost of weatherizing the Texas electric power system – which faced a major collapse during a February freeze – could run into hundreds of millions of dollars, but the expense would…
Texas oil pipelines face dry months as production languishes
APRIL 12, 2021 NEW YORK (Reuters) -Nearly half of all oil pipelines from the Permian basin, the biggest U.S. oilfield, are expected to be empty by the end of the year, analysts and executives said. Read more
Texas’ new set of electricity regulators begins to take shape in wake of deep freeze, power outages
By Robert T. Garrett, Apr 12, 2021 A new set of Texas electricity regulators began to take shape Monday, as Gov. Greg Abbott nominated a finance expert to be the next chairman of the Public Utility Commission while his earlier choice of a PUC member moved toward Senate confirmation. Read more
Northeast gas pipeline sparks FERC brawl
Carlos Anchondo, E&E News reporter, Tuesday, April 6, 2021 A fight over a major Northeast pipeline proposal is ramping up after developers asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for more time to complete the natural gas project. Oklahoma-based energy company Williams Cos. is seeking FERC approval for two more years to finish…
Virginia says it can’t issue stream crossing permit for Mountain Valley Pipeline before winter
By Sarah Vogelsong – March 29, 2021 Despite developers’ hopes of completing the Mountain Valley Pipeline by the end of 2021, Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality has told federal officials that it won’t be able to issue a new water quality permit for the project’s stream crossings before December.…
U.S. onshore oil and gas drilling rebounds with smaller, private operators leading the way
Energize Weekly, March 31, 2021 U.S. onshore oil and gas drilling showed signs of recovery in the fourth quarter of 2020 and the first few months of 2021 – sparked by a rebound in oil prices and strong activity among private companies, according to a Colorado School of Mines report.…
Oil CEOs Pledge Climate Collaboration with Biden Admin
by Bloomberg | Jennifer A. Dlouhy | Tuesday, March 23, 2021 Chief executives of some of the largest U.S. oil companies promised to collaborate with the Biden administration in its campaign against climate change during a meeting Monday with White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy. Read more
Four New Natural Gas Pipelines Come Online In The U.S.
By Charles Kennedy – Mar 16, 2021 The United States increased its natural gas pipeline transportation capacity by around 4.4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in just three months as four new pipelines entered into service, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday. Read more
Federal lands drilling moratorium could tip activity toward Texas and away from New Mexico
Energize Weekly, March 10, 2021 The Biden administration’s moratorium on federal lands oil and gas leasing and its review of future leasing could lead to a stark shift in activity to Texas from New Mexico in the Permian Basin, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas analysis. Half of…
Louisiana Offshore Oil Port Loadings Crash to Zero From Record
By Sheela Tobben (Bloomberg) — March 2, 2021 Crude exports from Louisiana’s offshore supertanker port tumbled to zero as Asian buyers limited purchases to manage high inventories that threaten to overwhelm storage facilities. Read more
Xcel Energy plans to transform its Colorado grid, boosting renewables and closing coal plants
Energize Weekly, March 3, 2021 Xcel Energy – in one of the country’s most sweeping initiatives to reconfigure a gird – has announced an $8 billion plan to double its renewable energy generation and storage in Colorado, add transmission and close all its coal-fired power plants in the state by…
Court rejects latest effort to stop Mountain Valley Pipeline
Laurence Hammack, Feb 20, 2021 An appellate court has declined to stop work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline, dealing the latest blow to arguments that there is no public need for the natural gas that is to be transported by the line. Read more
Collapse of the natural gas system from wellhead to turbine fueled Texas’ blackout
Energize Weekly, February 24, 2021 The near collapse of Texas’ electric grid was caused in the main by a failure of the natural gas system from the wellhead to pipeline to gas turbine, according to an analysis by the International Energy Agency (IEA). “Texas has a power shortage because it…
European oil companies changing names and shifting their focus to alternative energy
Energize Weekly, February 17, 2021 European oil companies are continuing their push to reorient and rebrand themselves as comprehensive energy companies and not just producers of oil and natural gas. On Feb. 9, French oil company Total announced it was changing its name to TotalEnergies to reflect a broader strategy…
How Many US GOM Jobs Could Go Under Biden?
by Andreas Exarheas | Rigzone Staff | Tuesday, February 09, 2021 If U.S. President Joe Biden’s pause on new oil and natural gas leases in offshore waters becomes permanent, the effect on the U.S. Gulf of Mexico workforce would be considerable. Read more
U.S. energy consumption will take years to rebound from pandemic, EIA says
Energize Weekly, February 10, 2021 It will take years for U.S. energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to return to 2019 levels after the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the country’s economy and the global energy sector, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). Energy consumption in…
U.S. oil prices post highest finish in over a year
By Myra P. Saefong and William Watts Oil futures rose Tuesday, with expectations that efforts by major oil producers to reduce production will lead to tighter global supplies lifting U.S. prices to their highest settlement in more than a year. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major…
U.S. Mountain Valley gas pipeline facing more delays
Jan 26 (Reuters) After a series of setbacks, the companies building the U.S. Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline now plan to seek individual permits to cross each stream remaining in its path, and analysts say that will delay its startup until 2022. Read more
