News
PLCA Draws 600 Delegates to 68th Annual Convention
Frank O. Welch, president of Rockford Corporation, presided over the Pipe Line Contractors Association’s 68th Annual Convention recently at the group’s recent annual meeting at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale in Arizona. New officers elected for 2016 included Bernie Bermack of Pe Ben USA, Inc., presid..
Agency: New Rules Needed to Make Offshore Drilling Safer
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Companies that drill for oil and gas in U.S. waters should be required to work more closely with rig workers and regulators, as they do in Norway and the United Kingdom, to reduce the risk of accidents, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) says. The board investigates major ind..
Natural Gas Combined-Cycle Plant Use Exceeded Coal Plants in 2015
Last year marked the first time on record that the average capacity factor of natural gas combined-cycle plants exceeded that of coal steam plants. The power industry has been running natural gas combined-cycle generating units at much higher rates than just 10 years ago, while the utilization of th..
EIA: Gasoline to Average Less than $2 in 2016
For the first time since 2004, U.S. drivers are expected to pay an average of less than $2 a gallon for gasoline, the government said Tuesday. They can thank the huge glut of oil around the globe. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its monthly short-term energy outlook that..
Los Angeles DA Charges Utility with Crimes for Gas Leak
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles prosecutors filed misdemeanor criminal charges Tuesday against a utility for failing to immediately report a natural gas leak that has been gushing nonstop for nearly 15 weeks. District Attorney Jackie Lacey said the charges aren’t a solution to the problem, but Sou..
OPEC Says $95 Oil Coming, But Not Until 2040
This week opened with the average global price of oil at an 11-year low, yet OPEC expects its own producers eventually will cut back on production, causing prices to rebound to $70 per barrel by 2020. That may seem a long time for producers to wait for oil to become more profitable, but in OPEC’s annual World Oil Outlook, issued Wednesday, the oil cartel does not see oil prices returning to the heights of $110 per barrel, where it was before the price crisis began in June 2014. Instead, it says it doesn’t expect prices to reach even $95 per barrel until 2040.
Oil Jobs Drive North Dakota to Lead US in Population Growth Again
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota is once again leading the nation in population growth, and the number of residents in the state is at an all-time high, according to figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The bureau's most recent estimate put the state population at 756,927 in July, an increase of 16,887 residents — or about 2.3% — compared to July 2014. That percentage, far higher than the national average, is largely driven by people in search of jobs in oil-rich western North Dakota.
Europe Cries Foul over German's Support of Russia's Gas Pipeline
Ther is a growing chorus in Europe against Germany’s support to expand a major natural gas pipeline from Russia over fears that it will leave Europe more dependent on their eastern neighbor. The Nord Stream 2 would build on the existing Nord Stream pipeline, a conduit that delivers Russian natural gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea. Crucially, the project cuts out Ukraine, a key strategic objective for Russia since the original project’s inception.
Ditch Witch Founder, Inventor of Compact Trencher, Dies
The utility construction industry lost a giant with death of Ed Malzahn, chairman of the Charles Machine Works Inc. (CMW). Malzahn’s invention of a compact trenching machine paved the way for changes in the way essential utility services are delivered to customers.
Gazprom Rapidly Losing Grip on European Markets
When talking about energy security in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), most governments think of gas pipelines. The bigger they are, the more secure they feel. In the past decade, at least 10 large-scale pipeline projects have been initiated and proclaimed as the ultimate source of gas diversification and energy security. However, just one has been actually realized – Nord Stream – and still Gazprom can fill its capacity only half-way making the project largely uneconomical.
Dont Expect Crude Exodus Because Export Ban Ending
Congress is on the verge of passing a major budget deal that includes some of the largest changes to energy policy in some years. Tucked into the budget bill is a repeal on the ban on crude oil exports from the United States, a highly sought after goal on behalf of the oil and gas industry. In exchange for lifting the export ban, Republicans agreed to extend tax credits for wind and solar for five years.
Mexico Oil Sector Sees Most Successful Auction So Far
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico's third auction to open oil and gas blocks to private investment was the most successful yet, with all 25 blocks drawing bids Tuesday. Officials awarded exploration and production rights to mostly Mexican companies, as well as one Canadian firm plus consortiums involving U.S. and Dutch investments. No major multinational oil companies participated in the bidding.
AP Analysis: Why US Will Export Oil for 1st Time in Decades
NEW YORK — The United States, seemingly awash in crude oil after an energy boom sent thousands of workers scurrying to the plains of Texas and North Dakota, will begin exporting oil for the first time since the 1973 oil embargo. The lifting of the embargo is part of a spending deal expected to be pushed through the House and Senate by the end of the week. Here's a brief look at why the ban was in place, and the reasons why that ban is now being lifted after four decades.
Natural Gas Price Plunges Due to Mild Weather
NEW YORK (AP) — Mild temperatures have cooled demand for natural gas, which is used to heat homes, sending the price of natural gas down sharply Monday. Stocks of companies that produce natural gas also fell.
Company Plans Gravel Island to Extract Arctic Offshore Oil
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Arctic offshore drilling by Royal Dutch Shell PLC drew protests on two continents this year, but a more modest proposal for extracting petroleum where polar bears roam has moved forward with much less attention. While Shell proposed exploratory wells in the Chukchi Sea about 80 miles off Alaska's northwest coast, a Texas oil company wants to build a gravel island as a platform for five or more extraction wells that could tap oil 6 miles from shore in the Beaufort Sea.
Accidental Partnership: From Potential Pipeline to Joint Venture Litigation
The briefing is now complete in a closely watched appeal of a landmark judgment issued last year in Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. v. Enterprise Products Partners L.P., in which a Texas jury concluded that, notwithstanding express contractual language disclaiming the formation of a partnership in connection with preliminary exploration of an oil pipeline project, the conduct of the parties could – and did in fact – establish a legally binding partnership.
Employment Practices Liability Coverage: How to Protect Yourself
The last year has been tough on the oil and gas industry. In times like these, as a number of companies are forced to downsize, the last thing your business needs is to face a lawsuit for wrongful termination.
Mr. Mayeaux, You Left Your Company in the Right Hands
Justin Harvey knows he has an industrial-sized pair of shoes to fill as he takes the helm at A+ Corporation, a family-owned and operated gas sample conditioning system service company in Gonzales, LA. The 30-year-old Harvey was just a toddler when his legendary grandfather Donald Mayeaux founded the company in 1989. Mayeaux earned his reputation for developing product concepts that changed the manner in which natural gas was sampled.
Why Texans Might Soon Be Driving On Mexican Gasoline
The world is changing fast in the energy industry and for no company is that truer than Mexican National Oil Company Pemex. After decades of bloated operations and mismanagement, Pemex has made major moves to improve its operations and attract foreign investors to the Mexican energy sector. This is a major piece of the current administration’s plan to modernize and improve the efficiency of the state-dominated oil sector and simultaneously give a much needed boost to the Mexican economy. Unfortunately oil markets are not cooperating.
OPECs Newest Member Actually Likes Low Oil Prices
As expected, OPEC’s decision to stick to its ‘high’ production levels in its December 4th meeting in Vienna didn’t go down well with the markets as oil prices plunged after the announcement. It is also quite evident that there is now a growing resentment within OPEC as members like Venezuela, Libya, Algeria and Angola were hoping for a production cut, which could have helped their ailing economies.
Gas Glut Mirrors Problems Facing Oil Markets
Natural gas prices have fallen to their lowest levels in three years, plummeting by more than 10% on Oct. 26. The balance of natural gas supply and demand typically goes through seasonal fluctuations, with inventories building during the summer months in North America as surplus production is diverted into storage. Then, in winter months, consumers draw down on natural gas inventories as heating demand spikes.
Editor's Notebook: Winners, Losers and Keystone XL Debacle
I have some final thoughts about the Keystone XL debacle, because that’s what it was. That project never should have been the line in the sand in the debate over climate change, because as we all know, any environmental effect would have been negligible at worst.
Oil Industry Cutting Again, But It Still Might Not Be Enough
Chevron announced on Dec. 10 its decision to slash capital expenditures even further for 2016, cutting spending down to $26.6 billion, or 24% below 2015 levels. "Our capital budget will enable us to complete and ramp-up projects under construction, fund high return, short-cycle investments, preserve options for viable long-cycle projects, and ensure safe, reliable operations," Chevron Chairman and CEO John Watson said in a statement. "Given the near-term price outlook, we are exercising discretion in pacing projects that have not reached final investment decision."
Former Energy Secretary Says OPEC Evolving
As far as one-time Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham is concerned the rumors of OPEC’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. “People who say OPEC is dead are dead wrong. They are evolving,” Abraham told about 100 guests of The Economist’s World in 2016 Breakfast, held Wednesday in Houston. Abraham, who is also a former Republican senator from Michigan, said the energy industry is facing a starkly different set of circumstances now than when he served in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 until early 2005.
Judge Rejects Bid to Block Alberta Clipper Pipeline Upgrade
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal judge rejected the key parts of a lawsuit brought by tribal and environmental groups that sought to block a capacity expansion on the Alberta Clipper crude oil pipeline, saying the courts don't have the authority to intervene at this stage. U.S. District Judge Michael Davis concluded Wednesday that the letters the State Department sent to Canadian-based Enbridge Energy weren't the kinds of final decisions that courts have jurisdiction to review.
Heating Oil, Propane Prices Lower This Winter
Weather forecasts for the winter predict warmer temperatures in regions east of the Rocky Mountains compared with last year. Based on those predictions and higher inventory levels, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects propane and heating oil prices to be lower for the season.
Oil Prices Seen Staying Low Next Year as Demand Weakens
PARIS (AP) — The head of the International Energy Agency expects oil prices to remain low next year as demand weakens and supply remains high. The price of oil fell this week to its lowest since early 2009, when the global economy was deep in crisis. The U.S. benchmark recovered 1.6% at $38.08 on Wednesday. Fatih Birol, executive director of the IEA, which represents oil-consuming nations, told a news conference on the sidelines of the U.N. climate conference in Paris, said, "When we look at 2016, I see very few reasons why we can see growth in the prices."
New Legislation Affects U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve
Two recently enacted laws authorize significant sales of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) over the next decade. The Bipartisan Budget Act authorizes the sale of 58 MMbbls of SPR oil from 2018 to 2025 for deficit reduction purposes and an estimated 40 to 50 MMbbls of oil in the fiscal period 2017-2020 for SPR modernization.
Marathon Abandons $270 Million Ultra-Deepwater Project
Marathon Oil announced on Dec. 2 its decision to abandon a key deep-water oil project in the Gulf of Mexico. The well that Marathon had been drilling had already caused the company some problems. Drilling the well took seven months, and mechanical problems delayed the project’s completion. Marathon said last week that upon completing the project, drilled at 34,600 feet, that it had plugged the well and released its rig. Marathon says that it has no further plans for the block.
Oil Sands Producers Can Live with Albertas New Carbon Taxes
If business is good at anything, it is pragmatism. Take a hostile takeover for example. After weeks or months of trading insults and accusations in and out of the media, a deal is struck and the warring CEO’s shake hands and call the final deal a stroke of genius. Whatever they may really feel, they put the past behind them and move forward, ostensibly in the best interests of shareholders. After all, it’s just business.
- Texas Waha Hub Gas Prices Plunge to Record Lows, Hit Negative Territory
- Williams Seeks Emergency Certificate to Operate $1 Billion Mid-Atlantic Gas Pipeline After Court Reversal
- Texas Oil Pipelines Near Max Capacity, Threatening Future Export Limits
- Energy Transfer Subsidiary Selects KTJV for Lake Charles LNG Export Project
- FERC Sides with Williams in Texas-Louisiana Pipeline Dispute with Energy Transfer
- Saudi Arabia Looking to Expand Pipeline to Reduce Oil Exports via Gulf
- Report: Houston Region Poised to Become a Global Clean Hydrogen Hub
- Texas Startup Endeavors Again to Build First Major U.S. Oil Refinery Since 1977
- Alaska Greenlights Enstar’s $57 Million Pipeline to Boost LNG Imports
- Texas Waha Hub Gas Prices Plunge to Record Lows, Hit Negative Territory
